Don
Factor Interview and The Oasis of Hope Hospital
Donald
Factor, former patient at the Oasis of Hope Hospital in Tijuana,
Mexico an Alternative Cancer Treatment Center. Oasis of Hope specializes
at combining conventional cancer therapies with alternative cancer
treatments to improve the quality of life of patients.
Donald
Factor, famed grand son of cosmetics giant Max factor, went to
the Oasis of Hope hospital after being told he only had 4 months
to live. "After the initial treatment and about a year of
home therapy. I was totally clear of any sign of cancer. Although
I will probably never know if any one part of my experience was
the actual key to my recovery, I am convinced that it was most
likely all of it -- everything, physical, emotional, and spiritual.
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explore what Oasis of Hope Hospital has to offer please follow
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In
1987 Don Factor went to the Oasis of Hope Hospital after being
told he had only four months to live. The cancer in his lung had
metastasized to his liver and his spine.
'When
I heard it it was even worse news than I had expected. And the
doctor was very negative, very apologetic gave no hope and I said
what can we do is there anything we can do and he said well we
can give you chemotherapy which might buy you and extra six months
of life. That was all he was offering. It wasn't so much a moment
of decision, or at least that isn't the way I remember it. Anna
and I both of us said we are not going to accept this.' Today
after nearly twenty years of being in remission Donald returned
for his annual yearly checkup.
'I
feel a sense of relief and definitely I feel that that has been
given to me for a good reason. And a lot of what I have thought
about during the seventeen years is trying to discover what that
reason is. And at times I have found it very frustrating. But,
at the same time, I that it is very much the journey rather or
more than the destination.'
A
positive mindset for the patients so that they go through a process
of cognitive restructuring. It is used with patients to help them
change their automatic negative thoughts associated with cancer
to positive and this is so important because when patients are
diagnosed with cancer they go through an instant identity crisis.
They forget all the wonderful things that make them a wonderful
human being.
Through
this approach we are helping them to remember that they are alive,
they are living and they are dealing with cancer.
At
the hospital the team are empowering the patient to heal themselves.
A persons faith is directly related to their ability to overcome
illness. So the team work hard a wonderful, spiritual healing
environment. To help people overcome the illness.
The
whole clinical team are committed to two key principles. The first,
'do no harm'. The second one is 'love your patient, as you love
yourself.'
Don
states 'that the staff said this was alright we are doing the
job. I think that that was the key to it in the sense that I was
part of the team helping to get me better as opposed to other
situations where the medical team I was an object that a bunch
of mechanics were working on.
Don
concluded the interview outlining how the hospital is an oasis
of hope, that there is hope. 'All the reading that I've done about
cancer in terms of treatment and particularly those that are written
by more orthodox writers about the alternatives they always talk
about these people who give false hope. Well I don't believe that
there is such a thing as false hope. There is either hope or there
is no hope and without hope you are never going to get anywhere.
Hope is extremely important. We talk about faith, hope and love
in the biblical sense and absolutely true. However for some reason
the doctors, the medics, don't want you to hope unless they can
give you a confirmation ahead of time that they are going to succeed.
Clinical
trials have shown that patients have up to a 50% greater chance
of survival than patients with similar cancer had conventional
treatment elsewhere. Whatever the outcome one thing that is at
the Oasis of Hope Hospital - HOPE.