Dr. Faulkner's recovery
Source: "A Doctor Heals Himself of Terminal Cancer," One Peaceful World, Autumn 1989. Also "The Macrobiotic Approach to Cancer," by Michio Kushi.
Hugh Faulkner was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer not long after happily retired as a general practitioner in London, and returned to the countryside outside of Florence, Italy with his wife. He experienced bowel obstruction and food absorption difficulties. So he underwent a surgery to relieve the obstruction but the surgeons made no attempt to remove the cancer.
A young woman who had given Dr. Faulkner shiatsu treatments for back pain recommended macrobiotics. He read some books on macrobiotics, and thought that it may help improve the quality of the months remaining to him. The usual rate of survival of his situation was about two to four months. All his medical friends assumed that he would die. What Dr. Faulkner was afraid of and dreaded , not the death itself, but the pain, the incontinence, the loss of autonomy when he became helpless.
Back in England, the Faulkners checked into a hospice - a center for the dying. While awaiting the end, they went to a macrobiotic center where a macrobiotic teacher advised them and encouraged them to see Michio Kushi for more recommendations. Luckily 6 weeks later, they met Michio Kushi on his European Seminars. Michio Kushi spent a long time examining Dr. Faulkner's texture - its appearance, elasticity and color. The Dr. Faulkner asked, "well, can macrobiotics heal my cancer?"
"No," said Kushi, "but your body can. What we can do is advise you on a diet and way of life that will almost certainly make you feel much better and give your body a chance to reject the cancer. We can't give you any guarantees - but we have plenty of evidence from cases like yours that it can work."
The couple returned back to their farm house in Italy, started cooking for themselves. The diet Michio recommended was a modified version of the standard macrobiotic diet. For breakfast, there was whole grain porridge and occasionally whole grain bread. Lunch included vegetable soup and tofu, tempeh, or another protein dish. Dinner consisted of pressure cooked brown rice and vegetables and occasionally, stewed fruits. Dr. Faulkner's diarrhea went away and he began to feel better. His wife also experienced improvement - she began to feel more energetic and confident. Visitors who came by to say goodbye to the dying doctor found him chopping wood and full of energy. By Autumn 1988, medical tests showed "no evidence of cancer, no evidence of abnormality of any kind."
"The big change in macrobiotics was hope, however implausible. That, and the feeling that I was regaining control of my destiny." Dr. Faulkner said.