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Kurdish man claims herbal therapy cured his cancer
Hussein Mohammed Mustafa, 46, lives in the town of Zharawa in Sulaimani province. Photo: Rudaw
ERBIL, Kurdistan Region – A Kurdish man who has suffered from urethral cancer for three years claimed a newly discovered herb in Kurdistan healed his illness and his physicians have advised him to continue using this herbal therapy.
Hussein Mohammed Mustafa, 46, lives in the town of Zharawa in Sulaimani province. The herb, known as chaq chaq in Kurdish, has been able to heal his serious disease miraculously, he claimed.
Mustafa told Rudaw that after chemotherapy failed to rid his body of the cancer, he turned to herbal therapy. “Due to this herb, I escaped the pain of my cancer in my urethra,” he said.
He “spent 30,000,000 IQD [$ 23,000] to buy medicine to treat my disease and I have also received 46 chemical needles and done six surgeries, but my health became worse day after day.”
“The doctor who used to do my surgeries decided to carry out the seventh operation for me. But I had to wait until he would be back from his travels abroad,” Mustafa explained. “When my doctor was abroad I fainted a lot. That is why I turned to use this herb.”
Relying on research on the herb conducted by a friend of his brother in the UK, Mustafa decided to try it. An experiment he said was successful as it brought life back to him.
When his doctor returned and did a check-up, he was shocked at the results but told Mustafa to “Go ahead and continue to use this because your health has very much improved,” Mustafa recounted.
After 40 days of taking chaq chaq, Mustafa’s doctor declared him “completely recovered.” This was just a few days before Eid al-Adha.
Mustafa posted his good news on Facebook. Since then, “2,000 people have visited me, many of whom were from America, Sweden and the UK.”
Describing how he cooked the herb to prepare it for use, Mustafa explained, “A bouquet of the herb should be put into four litres of water and cooked for four hours, until only two litres remain. After that, it should be put into a refrigerator until it is chilled.”
“Those who use the herb should drink it before breakfast in a cup of tea for 40 consecutive days.”
He said that others who have tried the herb have told him they are feeling better, even if they have not completed the 40-day course of treatment.
Mustafa rejected claims that he has received money from the patients visiting him for this herbal treatment, though he is in a dispute with a man who has started a business selling the herbal treatment.
“One day somebody alleging he was sick came to me and took information from me on how to use the herb. But now he is doing business with it and selling it for 100,000 IQD [less than $100]. I have warned him if he continues with this business I will file a lawsuit against him in court.”
Many others report that chaq chaq has also saved their lives.
Rezan, whose second name is not given, said she is also using the herb and her health has improved.
“I have been using this herb for 13 days. Thanks to God I feel like I am getting better day by day,” Rezan told Rudaw at Kirkuk Azadi hospital where she has been hospitalized to receive medical treatment.
Rezan said she uses the herb “secretly because they do not believe in it and I am afraid they will not treat me if they know I use it.”
Dr. Mohammed Shwani, who has treated Mustafa revealed, “I have around 450 to 500 patients. Mr. Mustafa was one of them. We give chemotherapy through several courses and ultimately will cut off the cancer. But, sometimes it remerges and again we give treatments to the patient.”
He said that the cancer is beaten in 75% of patients who receive treatment.
Speaking of Mustafa’s case, Shwani explained, “He received three to four treatment courses. The last time I examined his health, his bladder was clean and he informed me that he used this kind of herb” together with the chemotherapy.
Shwani added that “Some pharmaceutical drugs used are made from plants. But since this kind of herb is new, it has no scientific basis and no experiment has been conducted on it to know whether it is beneficial for curing patients of cancer.”
A specialized physician at a hospital in Erbil told Rudaw that they do not use any kind of herbal therapy for their patients.
“We do not use any kind of herb to treat patients visiting us,” said Dr. Sami Ahmed, manager of the Nanakali hospital for blood diseases and cancer. He said they only use drugs that are internationally studied and accepted.
Ahmed refused to comment on the herbal therapy Mustafa claimed had cured his cancer.
“I have nothing to say. I am not responsible for somebody who treats himself with herbal therapy to recover from cancer. This is the health ministry’s work.”
Source: Rudaw