End of Life

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Even with the best of medical care and the highest of technology, people still die eventually. This applies to IPT, too. Fatal diseases do not always respond to IPT, especially when the diseases are far advanced, and the body's healing resources are spent. For these patients, IPT can offer hope for an extended few days or weeks of life, with palliation of symptoms and improved quality of life.

A recent case of this was Mrs. Sabina Wurmbrand, who presented to Dr. Perez Garcia 3 with end stage liver and stomach cancer, projected to die within two days. With the help of IPT, her condition improved for a while, and she was able to live an additional two months with relatively improved quality of life, surrounded by family and friends.

Dr. Jean-Claude Paquette reported similar cases in his book Medicine of Hope (translated from French by Aimé Ricci).

One case was of a woman, age 59, with terminal lung cancer. Her doctors had sent her home to die in great pain. After her first of two IPT treatments, her pain was eliminated, her tumor shrank, she started to eat, recovered her voice, and could walk again. Sent home from the hospital, she was able to get her affairs in order as she lived a few more miraculous weeks. She only needed morphine for her last 30 hours.

Another case was of a woman, age 44, with advanced breast cancer. The tumor was discovered too late, and had metastasized. She refused surgery and radiation. Her one chemotherapy session caused such bad side effects that she discontinued it. With Dr. Paquette's IPT treatments, all but one of her metastases disappeared, her primary tumor shrank from 20 cm to 7 cm (96% reduction of volume), her hair grew back, and her suffering was greatly reduced. She died 7 months after beginning treatment, hospitalized during her last few weeks.

Here is a statement on the subject by Dr. Perez Garcia 3:

"IPT as a medical treatment has limits. One is not prolonging life, since no one can do that except God. IPT can help even when death is imminent to provide ordinary care to an ill person, improving their quality of life and dignity during their last days. IPT medical doctors recognize that death is an event that will take place. IPT provides palliative treatment as a privileged form of human charity for people in terminal situations."