92 Global India Corporation Mahim, Mumbai, Maharashtra

I've seen herbal remedy make tumours disappear, says respected cancer doctor By Celia Hall, Medical Editor Last Updated: 12:18pm BST 20/09/2004 Since I have been putting people on Carctol I have seen miracles British doctors are cautious people but Dr Rosy Daniel has decided to stick her neck out. She says she has seen walking miracles. To claim that an Indian herbal remedy can help the body rid itself of cancer is an open invitation to critics from orthodox and complementary medicine alike. Dr Rosy Daniel with a capsule of Carctol, a blend of medicinal herbs But she says she has seen cases of cancer - here and in India - in which the tumours have disappeared. There is no doubt that she is up against it. There are no clinical trials on the product and there is no evidence that it is active in the body or of how it works. But Dr Daniel, formerly medical director of the Bristol Cancer Help Centre, says she knows what she has witnessed and believes the time is right to speak out and to try to engage the interest of a wider circle of doctors and researchers. The product is called Carctol. It is a mixture of eight medicinal herbs and has its basis in traditional Hindu medicine. It is not taken alone but with a non-acidic diet, a digestive enzyme and very large quantities of water, three to five litres a day. "All science starts with observation and I am not claiming anything for Carctol. I am reporting a phenomenon," she said. "Over the years I have seen a number of remarkable recoveries but since I have been putting people on Carctol I have seen miracles. I have seen astounding results and they are mounting up. I want to relay this information in the spirit of science. Gillian Gill: self-healing "For the first time in 20 years I have a medicine that I believe will make a difference." Even the Bristol centre will not prescribe it because of the lack of clinical evidence, but Dr Daniel would like to see trials on people with end-stage cancer who would be offered the choice of chemotherapy or Carctol, which seems to be most active in cancers of the digestive tract. Asked how she knows Carctol is making the difference rather than all the other things her patients are doing, she answers, candidly: "Well, I don't." But she says she has seen no ill-effects from the potent mixture - five of the herbs are known to be active and are classed as medicinal - and says only research will answer the questions. "I have been watching like a hawk to see if there are any side-effects or other complications. I am satisfied that the claims of little or low toxicity are right. "But until there is any controlled scientific assessment one can't rule that out and until there is clarity about the mechanism of action you cannot be categoric about drug interactions either. You will not find these herbs in the British formularies. Even in the Indian formularies there is no claim that any are anti-cancer agents." Stephen Wood: scans Carctol was developed by a doctor from Rajasthan, Dr Nandlal Tiwari, who has been using it for 25 years. Dr Daniel, who practises integrated, "mind, body spirit" medicine in London and Bristol, went to India to meet him and look at his results. "I met about a dozen people who had been told they were terminal, who had really nasty cancers and whose hospital tests results were all clear," she said. In a study of 1,900 Indian cancer patients taking the product and following the regime, 25 per cent had 75 per cent to 100 per cent benefit, half had 25 per cent to 75 per cent benefit and 25 per cent had little or no benefit. Exactly how many cancers disappeared is not known. "Benefit" was deemed to be having more energy, putting on weight and being more tranquil. "With my own patients, my impression is that my results are close to Dr Tiwari's. I look for benefit in the first two months. If there is none then it is not worth going on with it," Dr Daniel said.