After years of taking histories of my cancer patients I have noticed a marked connection between their core emotional issues, their most imbalanced chakras and the location of the tumors. Cancer usually manifests in the body area near the most imbalanced chakra that is most affected by their core issue.
The idea that emotional trauma was the prime cause of cancer was met with considerable skepticism by the medical establishment in the past. But, that has been changing as research studies have been published in medical journals validating the cancer mind-body connection. In recent decades a new medical specialty called Psychoneuroimmunology has sprung up with its own schools, organizations and journals. Called PNI for short, this field deals with "the study of the interactions between psychological factors, the central nervous system, and immune function as modulated by the neuroendocrine system." Many PNI studies validate how emotional imbalances lead to the formation of cancerous tumors.
One such article in the European Journal of Cancer linked emotional stress with down-regulation of the immune system. It explored how depression could suppress killer T cell formation in the body, retard repair of damaged DNA and trigger aptosis (cell death). They concluded that "psychological or behavioural factors may influence the incidence or progression of cancer through psychosocial influences on immune function and other physiological pathways."
The controversial German doctor Ryke Geerd Hamer discovered what he calls the "shock-conflict" causation of cancer and other major diseases. He proposed that cancer stems from emotional-psychic causes that remain unresolved over long periods of time, and that emotional healing and meditative practices provide the best cancer treatments. According to Dr. Hamer's observations the body is able to heal itself of most cancers if:
- The patient is given therapy and support for de-programming and releasing the harmful effects of the shock-conflict on her body.
- The patient's body is not interfered with by over-use of medical treatment. This rather bold view is based on the belief that many treatments given by oncologists interfere with the body's self-healing process and aggravate the emotional causes of cancer by promoting fear and disempowerment.
Dr. Hamer has been persecuted for his practices, as you can understand from that last statement. During one trial he went through in Wiener Neustadt, Austria the prosecutor of his case had to admit into evidence that 6,000 out of the 6,500 patients with mostly advanced cancer that Dr. Hamer had treated were still alive 4 – 5 years after being treated by him. This, a 90 percent success rate, is unheard of in conventional treatment of advanced cancers.
According to Hamer human beings are very susceptible to the creation of lesions in the brain and organs due to shock and trauma. These types of lesions create something like a short-circuit in the brain that if unresolved can give birth to cancerous tumors. Dr. Hamer has been able to show the precise location and form of these lesions through CT scans of his patient's brains. In the scans they look like the concentric ripple pattern produced by dropping a pebble into a still pond.
CT scans also showed that concentric circle lesions often also form in a related organ at the same time as they appear in the brain. This is generally the organ that develops cancer. This validates a physical basis for the mind-body connection.
Hamer's Iron Rules of Cancer state:
- Every cancer and related disease starts as a serious, acute-dramatic and isolating conflict-shock experience. It manifests simultaneously on three levels: psyche, brain and organ.
- The theme of the psychic conflict determines the location of the focus in the brain, and the location of the cancer in the organ.
- The course of the psychic conflict correlates with the development of the focus in the brain, and the course of the cancer in the organ.
Hamer's observations are very much worth considering because of the large number of advanced cancer patients he has treated and tracked.
Another major part of Hamer's work concerns the healing phase of cancer. He has observed in thousands of patients that many of the most uncomfortable inflammatory symptoms, and the formation of many of the tumors showing up in scans, are actually part of the healing process. By managing these symptoms and helping patients transform their emotionally-based lesions Hamer and his protégées have achieved their high success rates.
The following chart illustrates the connections between organs and emotional issues. It combines Hamer's correlations as well as some of my own. As a disclaimer, you must remember that not all patients will follow what is in this chart. While it is a very helpful guide individual assessment is necessary.
| Type of cancer | Primary emotional issues according to Hamer | Primary emotional issues according to Starwynn/TCM |
| Thyroid | Disempowerment | Lack of full self-expression |
| Lung | Fear of dying or suffocation | Unrelenting grief, issues with receiving and letting go |
| Lymphatic | Loss of self-worth | Deep, pervasive fear and negative thinking |
| Breast | Separation conflicts | Issues with nurturing – not giving or receiving enough - betrayal |
| Stomach | Stuffing anger, "swallowed" too much negativity | same |
| Pancreatic | Anxiety, anger, family conflicts, inheritance issues | Lack of emotional sweetness in life, relationship traumas |
| Liver | Fear of starvation | Repressed anger, extended frustration |
| Colon | Ugly indigestible conflict | Rigidity, inability to adapt and let go, holding anger within or rage-o-holic |
| Uterine | Sexual conflict | Sexual abuse and boundary issues - betrayal |
| Cervix | Severe frustration | Same as uterus |
| Bone | Lack of self-worth, inferiority complex | Too much or too little willpower, ancient conflicts |
| Melanoma/skin | Feeling violated, unclean, loss of integrity | Out of touch with natural rhythms of life |
After Hamer's patients went through psychotherapy and resolved the specific inner conflicts that led to the cancer he was able to notice changes on their brain and organ CT scans. The characteristic lesions would disappear and be replaced by edema in those area. He sees this as a positive sign of healing. Eventually the body's own healing mechanisms would dispose of the cancer by assimilating, expelling or encapsulating it. As that happened normal tissue would grow back.
Cancer and the Chakras
Do you now accept that pervasive emotional issues are at the root of cancer, and that psychotherapy can be instrumental in resolving it? In my previous article in the April issue of Acupuncture Today I explained the connection between PNE centers (chakras), our emotional nature and cancer. In that article, I also outlined some specific therapies that can support a healing process for cancer patients using energy medical methods applied via affected chakras.
The following chart suggests associations of the PNE centers with the various forms of cancer. The purpose of this chart is to give you examples of these associations and stimulate further inquiry on your part. It is NOT a definitive guide to the cancer – chakra relationships. If you are interested in using this information with cancer patients I suggest that you observe their primary emotional issues with an unbiased and open mind. What do you observe? Then compare that to what is in this and the previous chart and notice any correlations. In many cases you will likely notice that your observations line up with what is listed here, in other cases it could be quite different.
In the "Primary emotional issue" column I have put a few keywords from the previous chart for convenience, drawing from both right columns.
| Type of cancer | Primary emotional issues | Primary affected PNE centers |
| Thyroid | Disempowerment, lack of expression | Throat (5) |
| Lung | Fear of dying or suffocation, unrelenting grief | Throat and Heart (4 or 5) |
| Lymphatic | Loss of self-worth, pervasive fear | Sacral and Solar (2 or 3) |
| Breast | Separation conflicts, nurture issues | Heart (4) |
| Stomach | Stuffing anger, "swallowed" too much negativity | Solar (3) |
| Pancreatic | Anxiety, family conflicts, lack of sweetness | Solar and Heart (3 or 4) |
| Liver | Fear of starvation, longstanding anger/frustration | Solar (3) |
| Colon | Conflict, inadaptable | Root, Sacral or Solar (1, 2 or 3) |
| Uterine | Sexual conflict & abuse | Sacral (2) |
| Cervix | Severe frustration | Sacral (2) |
| Bone | Lack of self-worth, inferiority complex, issues with "will" | Root or Sacral (1 or 2) |
| Melanoma/skin | Feeling violated, out of touch, lack of integrity | any |
Summary
While most patients are aware of their surface emotions they are not as commonly in touch with the deeper causative levels that have helped create the life path culminating in their current issues and diseases. Practitioners who can evaluate and treat the emotional imbalances at the root of cancer can be of great assistance both for remedial treatment and raising the awareness of the patient.
Multi-modal therapy using energy medical modalities such as microcurrent, color light therapy and sound therapies are extremely valuable for establishing a true healing dialogue, both between the practitioner and patient and between the patient and their own inner self. The combination of acupuncture on selected points with color light therapy on the chakras has powerful effects at bringing hidden, blocked energies to the surface and facilitating positive transformation and release.
References:
- One PNI journal: https://www.pnirs.org/society/society_journal.cfm
- orland's Medical Dictionary for Health Consumers.
- Kiecolt-Glaser JK, Glaser R. Eur J Cancer. 1999 Oct;35(11):1603-7
- TCM = Traditional Chinese Medicine. TCM theory recognizes characteristic emotions and life experiences associated with each major Organ. It is common practice to capitalize the "O" in Organ when referring to the TCM defined Organ, and organ with a lower case o when referring to the physical organs as recognized by Western medicine.
Click here for previous articles by Darren Starwynn, OMD, LAc.