Thirty years have passed since Mr. Qin Bowei and I worked together in the early 1960s on the treatment of leukemia with Chinese medicine. Today, leukemia is still like a troll, devouring the lives of millions of people year after year. Over the past thirty years, I have gone through a discovery-failure-exploration-again-failure-more successful I have learned more and more about leukemia. Here, I offer my own insights to fellow doctors for reference and correction.
I. Identification of the cause of the disease, heat toxicity as the root, physical deficiency as the symptoms
In the 1960s, Mr. Qin Bowei and I jointly published “Preliminary experience in the treatment of leukemia by Chinese medicine” (Chinese Journal of Internal Medicine, No. 5, 1960, p. 419) [Editor’s note: The Chinese Journal of Internal Medicine is only available after 1994. The central understanding was that “leukemia is a deficiency evidence”, and the basis of the theory was that leukemia is commonly characterized by a deficient complexion, dizziness and palpitations, thinness and body fatigue, lack of food and sleepiness, and a large deficient pulse, and the treatment was always based on ginseng, astragalus, and peony.
The lesson of failure forced me to make more in-depth and detailed observation and thinking about leukemia. Through years of observation, I found that patients with leukemia often see high fever at the onset of the disease, and the fever is not relieved by sweat, often accompanied by bleeding rashes, fainting and frenzy, red and vivid tongue, although the pulse is lightly taken weak and weak, but heavy pressure is often chordal and sharp, etc., an image of blood heat. Therefore, I think leukemia can be treated from a warm disease, the cause of leukemia is warm-heat poisonous evil, but this warm-heat poisonous evil is different from the general warm disease, it is not from the external feeling of the seasonal warm-heat poisonous evil, but endowed from the congenital, is fetal poison.
The main reason is that leukemia is a lesion of the blood-forming organs, and the site of the lesion is in the blood and bone. If the fetus is overheated or suffers from fever during conception, the heat toxin will be stored in the fetus and will not be dispersed, which will be embedded in the fetus’ essence and bone marrow, laying the foundation for the development of leukemia later. Modern research has found that the occurrence of leukemia is related to chromosomal abnormalities and has a certain genetic predisposition, which is also consistent with the theory of Chinese medicine.
Bone is capable of producing blood, and the warmth and toxicity are deeply embedded in the bone marrow, depleting the body’s essence and blood, resulting in a deficiency of essence and blood, and a loss of filling the body, so the body becomes weaker and weaker, and the blood does not produce enough blood, thus presenting a deficiency. Many leukemia patients do not develop the disease immediately after birth. This is because the body has its strengths and weaknesses, and there is a lot of warmth and poisonous evil. If the warmth of the poison is light, the speed of burning the essence and blood is also slow, although there is a mild imbalance between the body’s yin and yang, but through the regulation of the body’s positive energy, can be maintained for a long time without the onset of disease. If the warmth of the toxin is getting stronger, the essence of blood loss, more than the regulation of the positive qi, leukemia will be made because of it.
Second, check the pathogenesis, heat and bone, from the inside and outside the hair
General warm disease, according to the shallow depth of its initial location, divided into new sensation and voodoo warm disease. Newly felt warm disease, the evil is received from the outside, after the onset of transmission according to the level of Wei → Qi → Ying → Blood; voodoo warm disease, the evil ambushes in the early, after the onset of transmission according to the level of Blood → Ying → Qi → Wei. Leukemia is both warm fetal toxin early in the lining, the onset of the disease should also be forced from the lining outward. The location of leukemia lies in the bone l, l is the source or blood bank, and is particularly deeper than the blood part of the site, so after the onset of the disease there is a tendency to pass from the bone marrow to the blood part, then to the Ying part, and then the Qi part, the Wei part of the propagation tendency, can often see the onset of a depletion of the essence of the blood, or even disturbing the mind and closed orifices and see a critical image, or heat toxicity is very strong, rapid external steam, the onset of the disease is seen in the marrow, blood, Ying, Qi, and Wei all disease, and the onset of warmth and change is quite similar. When heat toxins force the blood to move delusively, the blood does not follow the path and overflows, then the rash and various bleeding symptoms are seen. When heat disturbs the heart and the mind, the mind is not guarded, so the sleep at night is restless, and even then the mind is faint and delirious. Heat toxicity is contained in the bone marrow, so there is often pain in the bones. The kidney is the main bone marrow, heat toxins within the depression for a long time, the early injury to the essence of l, water does not contain wood, then the liver and kidney essence and blood deficit, can not fill the limbs and muscles, then see the shape of thin body tired, thin tongue; essence and blood can not be glorified on the face, the face is less or pale yellow, or? White; essence and blood deficiency, tendons and veins lose moistening or blood heat is too strong, burning the liver meridian, then you can see the limbs contracture or convulsions and other signs of moving wind. Blood deficiency, loss of blood supply and stagnation of blood flow, together with stagnation of blood away from the meridians, may lead to internal stasis of blood and result in Y-cum (enlarged liver and spleen), scrofula (enlarged lymph nodes), sallow face and wrong skin nail. Heat toxicity is internalized in the Blood, so the tongue is red-red or purple-red. If the heat is strong and the essence is wounded, the pulse is fine, and if the heat and toxin are steaming and the righteousness is greatly wounded, the pulse is weak and large. It can be seen that the main pathological changes of leukemia is the heat toxin contained in the bone, evaporated from the inside out, heat knot, blood depletion, blood, stopping stasis and coexist, involving l, blood, Ying, Qi, Wei five levels, the pathology is intricate and complex, non-general warm disease comparable.
Third, on the treatment, clear heat and cool the blood, nourish the kidney and promote depression
The Inner Classic says: “Heat is cold”, “warmth is clear”, “fire is depressed”, Ye Tianshi more specifically pointed out that the treatment of warm disease heat in the Ying and blood as “into the camp can still penetrate the heat to turn the gas, …… into the blood will be afraid of blood depletion and blood, straight must cool the blood to disperse the blood.” The cause of leukemia is heat toxicity, since the heat should be cleared and detoxified. The blood is often disturbed by the blood to move the camp, so when the blood is cooled and dispersed.
The blood is cooled, that is, the use of cold products to lift the blood heat toxicity. Heat in the blood, blood closed, the disease is deep, so the treatment of leukemia first application of cold into the blood products, straight fold its heat, commonly used drugs such as red peony, cedar, whiteheaded worm, raw ground elm, ghost arrow feather, etc..
The blood circulation refers to the use of blood products to eliminate blood stasis caused by moving blood, while dispersing the heat in the blood, commonly used drugs such as sliced ginger yellow, cyperus and so on.
The blood is wounded, the vital energy is not supported, and the heat is more rampant. Therefore, while cooling the blood, it is also necessary to add sweet cold to nurture Yin and salty cold to nourish the kidneys, to produce Yin and blood, fill the essence, and “strengthen the main water to control the sun”. The essence of blood, blood can be diluted and run smoothly, can also promote the dissipation of stagnation, commonly used drugs such as Shengdi, XuanShen, ShaShen, MaiDong, ZhiMu, etc..
Xuan Yu that is, to promote the flow of Qi closed. In addition to cooling the blood and dispersing it, the treatment should also promote the flow of Qi, so that the internal heat can reach the outside and the internal heat can be dispersed, which is an important way to treat the heat in the blood. Therefore, in the treatment of leukemia, regardless of whether there is high heat in the qi part, I often use light and clear products to promote air circulation, to open up the qi, in order to hope that the heat and toxicity of the Ying and Blood part can be resolved through the qi part. Commonly used drugs such as silver flower, forsythia, big blue leaf, etc.. In particular, almonds are often used to open up the qi part of the depression, and slice of turmeric to move the blood part of the stagnation, so that the qi and blood flow smoothly, internal heat can be easily reached.
I also use targeted drugs, such as Qing Dai, while identifying the symptoms. Qing Dai enters the liver meridian, clears the liver and fire, cools the blood and detoxifies it, which is a good medicine for leukemia. However, Qing Dai is extremely bitter and should be swallowed in a gelatinous container.
In conclusion, the treatment of leukemia should be to clear heat and cool the blood, nourish the kidneys and promote depression as the main method, under this premise, and then combined with the accompanying symptoms with the addition of reduction. For example, the faintness of the mind plus Anm Niuhuang Wan; spasms plus hooked vine, chrysanthemum, Zixue Dan; constipation plus Huang, etc.
A case of leukemia combined with epilepsy
Li, female, 8 years old, came to the clinic on June 17, 1987. The child started to have fever, enlarged liver and spleen, lymph nodes and subcutaneous bleeding in March 1985, and was seen in a large hospital in Beijing. He was diagnosed as “acute lymphoblastic leukemia” by bone examination and underwent chemotherapy by intramedullary injection, and his condition improved. In June 1987, he began to have seizures and came to me for treatment. At that time, he had the following symptoms: yellowish face, subcutaneous purple spots, irritability, restless sleep at night, and dry stools. He had several seizures and strange screams daily. The mouth was dry and the tongue was red, and the pulse was thin and slippery. Hematocrit 9.2 g%, platelets 130,000/mm3, leukocytes 15,000/mm3.
Differentiation: Heat entering the blood of the camp and internal movement of liver wind. Prescription: Sha Shen 10g, Yu Zhu 10g, Yuan Shen 10g, Sheng Di 10g, Qi Shao 10g, Mao Lu Gen 10g, Shui Safflower Seed 10g, Jiao San Xian 10g, Hooked Vine 10g, Mother of Pearl 20g, Qing Dai 4g (punch).
After seven doses, there were no more purple spots under the skin, convulsions and strange screams occasionally, but still disturbed, sleepless at night, dry stools, red tongue, yellow fur, and fine pulse.
Evidence: Ying heat has not yet been exhausted. Still advancing and retreating by the previous method. Prescription: Sha Shen 10g, Yu Zhu 10g, Yuan Shen 10g, Sheng Di 10g, Red Peony 10g, Dan Shen 10g, Zhi Mu 10g, Hooked Vine 10g, Sheng Oyster 20g, Da Huang 0.5g, Qing Dai 4g (punch), Shui Saffron Seed 10g.
After seven doses, night sleep gradually rested, stool as usual, convulsions and strange screaming once in a few days.
The child’s condition has been stable since then with this formula as the main treatment and sometimes with the addition and subtraction of elevation san. The child’s condition has been stable. He now has a hematocrit of 12g%, white blood cells of 5700/mm3, platelets of 297,000/mm3, and no young lymphocytes. The child is still on intermittent medication to consolidate the effect of treatment.
The prognosis of leukemia is worse when combined with central nervous system symptoms. In this case, the key to the pathogenesis of leukemia is the heat in the bones and blood in the blood, and the treatment is based on clearing the heat in the blood, invigorating the blood, and nourishing the liver to quench the wind.