The 70's, G. E. Griffith and B-17

Ah yes, the nostalgic 70's and the belief that all it took to cure cancer was vitamin B-17, aka laetrile. If that were true, we would all have a lot more Steve McQueen movies to enjoy. McQueen used laetrile to try to beat cancer, but instead of curing his existing cancer, he developed a second form of cancer (mesothelioma) which he died from.

The site has the old World Without Cancer documentary by G. Edward Griffith, author of "The Discovery of Noah's Ark". Like the purported discovery of Noah's Ark, there is some sketchy evidence, such as mice studies, that would support SOME benefits of B-17, but no conclusive evidence and certainly no evidence whatsoever that B-17 is a magic bullet for cancer.

I hate to ever find myself on the side of mainstream medicine, but I have to report that all major studies have indicated either no effectiveness or very minimal effectiveness, including ones conducted at the Mayo Clinic and Memorial Sloan Kettering, and I for one am skeptical about B-17 having more than marginal benefits. In fact, I shudder at the thought of anyone relying on B-17 as their sole defense against cancer.

On the other hand, the 70's were the second decade of mainstream medicine promising us that a cure for cancer was "just around the corner" and yet here we are, fully 4 decades later and the cure rate for cancer remains basically unchanged. In the interim, I think that we in the field of alternative treatments and natural remedies have recognize a great many alternatives to the slash, burn and poison treatments of mainstream medicine. B-17 appears to be a useful weapon to add to our arsenal, but far from the only one and not the exclusive one we should add.

Just for the record, I am also not convinced about the discovery of Noah's Ark! That belief, however, is not likely to cost you your life.
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