Old woman’s malignant ulcer, which became a deep hole, cured by Chinese medicine, making a stir in the hospital
Migraine / various pain symptoms / Inflammation / Malignant ulcers, Medical Case
An old woman had a big sore in her buttock. It was unable to be cured for a long time and gradually festered, forming a big hole up to 9.5 cm deep. Bones were almost visible and it was horrific. She first came to visit me in early 2003 when she was 75 years old. She could not walk, so she came in a wheelchair. Her complexion was green, yellow and dull, and her palms were cold. Due to protruding spurs pressing her spinal nerves, she had to undergo a surgery. Possibly during the surgery, some nerves were severed so her left foot could not be lifted. Her right foot was able to move freely few years ago, but the condition deteriorated. She was not able to lift the right foot now, same as her left foot. Her lung function was relatively poor as she had tuberculosis long time ago with some lung tissues calcified.
Her malignant sore was located between her right buttock and thigh. It had been festering for three months and could not be cured. The wound felt numb. Watery blood seeped out every day and needed to be washed. She had to use a urinary catheter to empty the bladder to prevent the wound from being infected by her urine. Doctor said a surgery might be required for it to heal. The patient had difficulty falling asleep at night and her defecation was unsmooth. I analyzed her conditions and diagnosed that her malignant sore could not recover because her liver was bad and her immune system was damaged. In addition, her lumbar spine hurt and her nerves injured led to the weakening of her leg muscles and even the inability to grow new muscles. It was like diabetic patients’ feet festering – wounds in areas without nerves could not recover. I suspected there was also stasis in her brain, which aggravated the trauma to the nerves in her legs.
Malignant sore shrank with granulation
After taking medicine, the patient’s head sweated heavily like she had washed her hair. Her left foot muscles twitched frequently, indicating reactions from her nerves. She could kick her left foot upwards and straighten it, while her right foot could also move a little. When she was assisted, she could stand for a while. These were all very good responses. The sore also showed signs of improvement with the start of granulation.
After nearly a month of treatment, the depth of the patient’s ulcer reduced to only 6 cm, meaning that it was slowly recovering. When a cotton swab was put into the hole, she felt a sense of pressure, indicating muscles were growing around the hole. Muscles in her right hip began to plump up, increasing the mobility of her right foot. At the third follow-up visit, the patient’s conditions were good. Her appetite had greatly improved, and she had gained some weight. She defecated twice a day, with her stools being in the form of strips, much better than before when they were hard and granular. Her left foot could be straightened and lifted with strength, though her right foot was about the same as last visit with little progress. Later, her left hand became swollen for some unknown reason, but it was fine after a day or two. When I looked at her wrist, there was still minor swelling. It was very painful when pressed. It should be caused by the obstruction of her meridian. I tested her ability to stand. She was able to stand assisted by two people, but for only twenty seconds before she needed to sit down.
At the following visit, strength in patient’s legs had further improvement. She could stand with the assistance of only one person and could stand for two minutes before she needed to sit back in the wheelchair, indicating her spine and legs were being strengthened. Her son said the bulging part of her lumbar vertebrae seemed to be better, becoming less bulging than before. Her complexion was ruddy and she was full of energy. Her right foot could be controlled and lifted slowly, but still not up to the same level as her left foot. I believed not until her malignant sore was cured could her right foot movement be improved.
At the seventh follow-up visit, her daughter told me that when the nurse washed her wound, there was still watery blood seeping out, but the depth of the wound had reduced to only 2 cm, a very good progress. I told her to hold on to the desk and stand up from the wheelchair. After less than three minutes she had to sit down. She then tried again with much more confidence. She held on to the handle of the wheelchair with one hand and pressed on the desk with the other hand. With some help, she stood up slowly, holding it for four and a half minutes before sitting down. To encourage her to practise this more at home, I said if she could stand up from the wheelchair for five minutes, I would reduce her consultation fee. The urine she brought in was blood red with cholesterol deposits. Her complexion was very good, reddish and fair, with the yellowish colour all disappeared. Her palms were rosy and changed from hard to soft. Her vital energy also began to flourish.
Heaven helps those who help themselves and the miracle finally happened. The patient could really stand up by herself for more than five and a half minutes. At the ninth follow-up visit, the patient pressed on to the wheelchair handle with both hands, stood up slowly and then put her hands on the desk to support her whole body without any help. Her face looked relaxed, without any signs of pain. I also kept my promise and reduced the consultation fee.
Wound cured, causing a stir in the hospital
The recovery of her sore caused a sensation even at the United Christian Hospital, where she was treated, and it made me famous. The head nurse was so amazed and she called me to ask how I treated her. I said I first restored the function of her nerve system, then I cleared the blockage in her meridian, and then the sore was cured. Although I explained it in only a few words, which I was not sure whether the head nurse understood, the words already contained great wisdom of Chinese medicine in thousands of years’ medical history. At the 11th follow-up visit, the depth of her wound reduced to only 1 cm, however, the surrounding skin was harmed due to excessive use of bandages around the wound. I suggested that her family tell the nurse to remove the Foley catheter, but unfortunately the hospital refused.
By the 32nd follow-up visit, the malignant sore had closed and completely healed without seeping out anymore watery blood. It could be said that the patient had fully recovered. The patient had been treated for seven months from the first visit to this point of time, with the deep wound having filled with slowly growing muscles. Regarding other aspects, everything was normal with no major changes, except poor sleep and incontinence, still cannot be controlled. There was also her spine and leg problems, which would take time to treat. Soon after, the patient found something sticky like snots in her feces, but fortunately there was no blood. This indicated a tumor in her intestines, with the “sticky substance” being its secretion. After drinking medicine for a period of time, her feces became strip-shaped with no more “sticky substance”. However, they were very stinky with a large amount of overnight stools and necrotic tissues excreted from her body. Later, her feces became granular and difficult to be discharged, which made her very distressed. She also complained about frequent dizziness and cough. At the 39th follow-up visit, she said her stools were long strips again, but they were sometimes watery. She also felt tired. I took her pulse, her hands were very cold, which might be caused by the tumor-dissipating medicines. At the 43rd follow-up visit, although the weather was cold, the patient’s complexion improved. Her hands were warm and rosy, and her defecation was smooth again and stools were strips without “sticky snots”. I believed that her tumor should have been gone.
When she slept at night, both her feet often twitched, with pain in her right big toe, which made her unable to fall asleep. At the forty-fifth follow-up visit, her pulse was very even and strong, beating sixty times per minute. However, she had difficulty defecating and she had to sit in the toilet for a long time. The wound in her buttock recovered very well, but it was still concave because muscles had not fully grown back, just like what happens after a piece of flesh is cut, when the wound heals, it is always dented and deformed.
At the 50th follow-up visit, the patient’s bladder was enlarged as she waited a long time before she released her urine. Her right kidney also swelled due to urine accumulation. Her right foot also had edema. After more frequent urine release, the edema in her foot subsided. The patient had a protuberance in the lower part of her right neck, which felt throbbing when pressed. After taking medicine to remove the stasis and open up the blockage in her brain, the throbbing reduced. In the mid-stage of the treatment, the patient’s daughter suddenly told me that her mother had a neurological disorder and even hit other people. I explained that the abnormal phenomenon might be caused by the discharging of liver toxins in a large amount which affected her cranial nerves.
There was one time when the patient’s left ear was infected. When she went to the hospital for a follow-up visit, the Western doctor advised her to have an operation to fill up the hole in her inner ear. I strongly objected to an operation because the anaesthetic injected for the operation would damage her brain. A large amount of antibiotics would also be used to prevent the wound from infection. That would damage her heart, lung, liver and kidney functions. Taking my Chinese medicine could cure the ear issue, so there was no need for a surgery. Luckily, her family listened to my advice and gave up the idea. The patient’s left ear problem was cured after a few weeks. The patient also stopped taking medicine then.
Left breast tumor grew gradually
About a year later, the patient came back for treatment of a benign mastadenoma under her left breast. I immediately prescribed medicine for her. After a while, the tumor shrank and became soft. Blood test showed everything was normal except that a breast cancer indicator (CA 15-3) was a little higher than normal, still within the controllable range. However, the tumor gradually grew to the size of a kumquat.
Later, the patient didn’t want to drink medicine. She felt very tired, had some cough, like having a cold, and often spat out thick phlegm. I told her family to persuade her to drink medicine anyway. Then one day her son-in-law called me when I was out of town. He said she seemed to have gotten better. Her cough reduced and she spat out a lot of thick phlegm. But within an hour, her daughter called and said after her mother was asleep, a lot of saliva came out from the corner of her mouth. When she helped wipe her mouth, she noticed that her lips turned purple and asked me what to do. I immediately told her to call an ambulance to take her mother to the hospital. I received no more calls after that.
When I returned to Hong Kong that evening, I called her daughter immediately to ask about the latest situation. She said that her mother passed away after arriving at the hospital. The news was too sudden, and I thought deeply to myself why the patient died so quickly. At first, I thought it was the phlegm in her throat, which she couldn’t cough up on the bed and flowed into her trachea and suffocated her. But the patient’s daughter said the hospital did not find phlegm in her throat. This was very strange. On that day before patient went to bed, patient’s son had given her a bowl of porridge. Then I received the call from her son-in-law informing me that her cough had improved. The cause of death was really puzzling. During patient’s last follow-up visit, her pulse was strong, eyes were bright, and complexion was very good. At the end, even the autopsy could not find the cause of death. Nevertheless, her daughter said a lot of saliva came out from her mouth, which might had flowed into her trachea, due to her difficulty swallowing, and suffocated her. That was exactly my speculation. Fortunately, the patient passed away peacefully without any pain. The patient was first diagnosed on 28 February 2003 and the treatment ended on 31 January 2008, with medicine stopped for a period in the middle. The treatment lasted for three years and nine months, with 164 visits. At the beginning of the treatment, the healing of her long-existed ulcer was regarded as a miracle by the hospital, which is worth mentioning here.
This article was written by Dr. Sik-Kee Au
July 18, 2017
For enquiries, please email to sikkeeau@gmail.com
Medical case number: 030228