Ryke Geerd Hamer

Ryke Geerd Hamer (1935-2017) was a German physician who had his medical license revoked. He was a noted anti-Semite, known for his creation of "the Germanic New Medicine"®, a highly controversial alternative medicine practised almost exclusively by Hamer, though he has some devoted (without a scientific background) supporters. Hamer used GNM most frequently, and illegally, as a purported treatment for cancer.

Hamer's pseudoscientific theory is that every disease has a psychosomatic origin in psychological conflicts and anxieties and their neurological impact (this bears some eerie similarities to Christian Science views on illness). Hamer believed that cancer and other diseases can be treated and cured by using "conflictolysis" — resolving the mental conflicts which Hamer believed caused the illness.

The German New Medicine
Following the death of his son in a shooting incident in 1978, Ryke Geerd Hamer developed testicular cancer. His wife also developed breast cancer at around the same time. Hamer came to believe that both cancers had been directly caused by shock at their son's death and that they could be treated by resolving this emotional conflict. Despite that, he received a conventional operation for his testicular cancer in 1979, while his wife was treated by Hamer himself, as the first patient of his New Medicine, and died in 1985.

Hamer announced the creation of his "New Medicine" in 1981. Despite his theories being rejected by the scientific establishment, he opened a series of cancer clinics between 1982 and 1985, all of which were closed down by the authorities for illegal practices. The vast majority of his patients died at these clinics, although Hamer continued to publicly present his treatment methods as successful.

In 1986, Hamer's medical licence was revoked. He continued to practice illegally in various European countries in between prosecutions and stints of jail time. Unsurprisingly, courts have found him to be mentally unstable, and thus unfit to practice medicine. Alarmingly, he has been supported and defended by some of those to whom he has been peddling his false treatments. He spent the last years of his life in Norway.

Hamer v. Norway
In 2007, Hamer sought authorization to work as a doctor in Norway. The Board of Medical Practitioners denied his application unanimously. According to the Board, Hamer was unfit to practice and would even pose a risk to his patients if he were to be granted authorization.

Not happy with this, Hamer sued the Board and demanded his license, because, among others;


 * The Board did not disprove his theories, so how could they suggest that his patients died off?
 * If the Board would let Hamer practice for a few years, they would be amazed at the result.
 * They laughed at Semmelweis and Galileo, didn’t they?

Just to make everything crystal clear, Hamer stated in court that he did not recognise standard medicine and would only use New German Medicine on his patients.

Not surprisingly, the court did not feel inclined to play along. According to the court, replacing all standard medicine with an unproven theory is not only irresponsible, it could be deadly for the patients (as it was for the patients of his "clinics").

The court also pointed out that a doctor is not supposed to use his patients as guinea pigs; "Under any circumstance, the plaintiff's desire to test out his theories is of no value. The plaintiff must seek recognition for his theories through the traditional scientific channels."

Undaunted, Hamer continued to peddle woo to desperate people.

Hamer's theories
Hamer has repeatedly claimed that The German New Medicine could cure more than 90% of cancer cases. In reality, evidence of patients successfully treated by GNM is no more than anecdotal, while at least 140 deaths of GNM patients have been documented. Hamer attributed the deaths to intervention by conventional medicine or to the patients not being fully committed to his cure (see "No True Scotsman").

Needless to say, GNM is condemned by the medical community, is not supported by any empirical testing, and is not backed up by any body of literature other than Hamer's own delusional writings.

Hamer also made numerous anti-Semitic and Holocaust denialist statements, accusing an international Jewish conspiracy of slandering him and keeping the truth about Germanic New Medicine from the public. He claimed that Jewish doctors secretly practise GNM successfully on Jewish patients but deny it to others. Hence he held Jews responsible for the deaths of every patient who had died while undergoing conventional cancer treatment.

In line with his pseudomedical theories, Hamer was also an AIDS denialist, claiming that AIDS is a consequence of the trauma of being diagnosed with HIV, rather than being caused by HIV itself.

He also denied that the moon landing and the 9/11 terrorist attacks actually took place.

He believed that vaccinations are of no use, except to implant you with a "death-chip", which allows THEM to kill you via remote control!