ARTIKEL

“ALTERNATIVES IN CANCER THERAPY" 

BY Ross, R.Ph. Pelton, Lee Overholser

IN ITS inorganic form, the trace mineral germanium is used in the electronics industry as a semiconductor, and has no nutritional or therapeutic benefits. However, in its organic form, germanium is being hailed as one of the greatest new developments in the nutritional treatment of cancer.Organic germanium is a biological-response modifier. Biological-response modifiers are substances that can enable the body to change its response to tumors, resulting in therapeutic benefits. Germanium does not directly attack cancer cells. Instead, it seems to stimulate the body’s immune system, making it potentially effective in the treatment of cancer as well as other degenerative diseases. (8)In 1967 the late Dr. Kazuhiko Asai succeeded in synthesizing Ge-132, a form of organically bound germanium. Organic germanium can enhance the immune system, stimulate the production of interferon, and promote antitumor activity. Interferon’s most important function is to augment and stimulate the body’s production of natural killer (NK) cells, which directly combat cancer cells. One review of organic germanium’s anti-tumor mechanisms concluded that its most important and best described activity is its ability to cause tumor regression in a wide variety of experimental models. (3)In 1945 Dr. Asai formed the Coal Research Institute in Japan. During the process of searching for better ways to mine and use coal, he discovered .that the fossilized plants in coal deposits contained substantial amounts of the trace element germanium.Learning of reports from Russia about germanium’s near-miraculous powers of rejuvenation and its use in the treatment of cancer, Dr. Asai decided to investigate its biological properties. (1) In 1969, near the end of his career as a coal engineer, he founded the Asai Germanium Research Institute so he could seriously pursue his interest in germanium.Dr. Asai’s original research, with organic germanium extracted from natural plant sources, convinced him that it could result in remarkable health benefits. However, it soon became apparent that extracting the amounts necessary to treat cancer and other diseases was too costly.Dr. Asai finally succeeded in developing a process for producing an organic germanium, Ge-132, that was chemically identical to the form he had extracted from plants. The chemical name for this organic germanium compound is bis-carboxyethyl germanium sesquioxide. Since then several other Japanese companies have patented other processes for the production of organic germanium.Dr. Asai found that many of the important herbs and medicinal plants traditionally used in healing—such as ginseng, garlic, com-frey, and aloe—all contain substantial amounts of germanium. He also discovered that the amount of germanium in a plant varies according to the quality of the soil in which it grows and that adding germanium to the soil enhances plant growth. He wondered if the therapeutic benefits of these herbs were in part due to the high amounts of germanium they contain.