Electromagnetic waves are waves or periodic disturbances that do not need a medium to travel, unlike mechanical waves that do require a medium (solid, liquid or gas). Electromagnetic waves travel through vacuum and are caused by changes in electric and magnetic fields. Accelerating a charge creates electromagnetic waves and it travels at different waves and spans in a very broad spectrum. This wide spectrum of wavelengths and photon energy is called the electromagnetic spectrum. There are 7 different types of waves in an electromagnetic spectrum; radio waves, microwaves, infrared waves, visible light, ultraviolet waves, x-rays and gamma rays.
Each of these categories contains different type of waves, which varies in wavelength and photon energy, which is the units in which electromagnetic radiation come in. Figure 1. An Electromagnetic Spectrum shows the different wavelengths and photon energies of different electromagnetic waves. Source: http://www. lbl. gov/MicroWorlds/ALSTool/EMSpec/EMSpec2. html Figure 1. An Electromagnetic Spectrum shows the different wavelengths and photon energies of different electromagnetic waves. Source: http://www. lbl. gov/MicroWorlds/ALSTool/EMSpec/EMSpec2. html There are many uses of the electromagnetic waves.
Radio waves, which have the shortest wavelength, are most commonly used for radio communications. Microwave have a high frequency and is made by various transmitters is used for microwave ovens. Infrared waves can’t be seen but the body detects infrared as heat. Visible light is the electromagnetic radiation that produces our visual sensations. Ultraviolet waves are invisible rays that are emitted by the sun by electric arcs. Gamma rays have a shorter wavelength than the last category electromagnetic waves, x-rays, which are used in medical purpose for x-rays.
Electromagnetic radiation could also be used for medical purposes, not only the common x-rays but also the other different types of radiation. Some therapies even consist of different types of electromagnetic radiation combined. CT Scans and cancer therapies usually make use of electromagnetic radiation. When exposed to the human body, tissues absorb the radiation and causes different effects to the body but most commonly heating. One of the most famous of these electromagnetic therapies is the BioResonance Tumor Therapy.
Cancer is a rapidly growing and extremely dangerous disease that is increasingly wide spreading over the years. It is estimated that 1,638,910 men and women of which 848,170 men and 790,740 women, will be diagnosed with and 577,190 men and women will die of cancer of all sites in 2012 as based on SEER Cancer Statistics Review. The rate of cancer survivors is also not very high, at 65. 4% from 18 SEER geographic areas, this means, that a cure is needed to be found fast or any form of medical solutions. The idea of the BioResonance Tumor Therapy was to introduce the alternative on medical therapy for tumoric cancer.
A biophysicist from Germany named Martin Keymer, as mentioned in their website, invented the BioResonance Tumor Therapy and its machine. The therapy is meant to target a gene in the body called the P53 gene, which tracks degeneration of a cell and triggers its self-destruction. Through this therapy, electromagnetic waves are used to trigger the P53 gene in the tumor cells that are suppressed, to ensure the self-destruction of the tumor cells in hopes to reduce and/or eliminate the tumor. Figure 2. BioResonance Tumor Therapy Machine. Source: “BioResonance Tumor Therapy. ” BioResonance Tumor Therapy.
N. p. , n. d. Web. 21 Oct. 2012. <http://www. quackwatch. com/01QuackeryRelatedTopics/Cancer/bioresonance. html>. Figure 2. BioResonance Tumor Therapy Machine. Source: “BioResonance Tumor Therapy. ” BioResonance Tumor Therapy. N. p. , n. d. Web. 21 Oct. 2012. <http://www. quackwatch. com/01QuackeryRelatedTopics/Cancer/bioresonance. html>. The vindicators of the project explains that the tumor cells generate “electromagnetic oscillations” that are different from the surrounding tissues. The BioResonance Therapy claims to be able to detect and modify oscillations from the cancer.
The theory is based on the idea of “inverse oscillation therapy” that involves the principle of physics and biophysics of wave interference to cancel the electro-magnetic charge of the toxins. The treatment have shown some successful results from treatments that gave 80% of patients tumor-free lives, even some that have been already given a deadline or estimated time of death. The treatment also provided the service of alternative cure for tumoric cancer that is non-invasive, comfortable and provides a gentle cure for patients.
This have provided many patients with a new hope for the future, benefiting them and they are given new hope, which is of course a very good thing. However, there are major flaws in this form of therapy. The theory behind the idea of the machines had never been proven. In fact, regenerating or triggering the P53 gene is practically impossible because the suppressed gene is actually not anymore functional/dead. Tumors and cancers are cause by gene mutations that causes the P53 gene to no longer function.
The device is limited to only be able to “mess” with the cell communications system with electromagnetic radiation to change and/or block the signals. The therapy promises a large number/gurantee for a cure for tumors, however it is not supported and/or proved to be true which makes it an empty promise. The treatment also presents side effects to the patient that could prove to also be fatal for the health of the patients, such as emerging diseases from the past that have not been properly cured together with the patients’ current disease, making the situation worse and doubles the health risk for the patient.
Giving people information that is misleading and might endanger them makes it a moral issue and also an ethical issue. People deserve to be treated according to their rights, which also means that the patients have the right to know more about the treatment and its actual credibility, also the potential dangers that they might be facing. It is also the providers’ responsibility to be ethical for the patients’ knowledge and health. Not only so, the producing of these machines cost a large amount of money especially since it is branded as a form of tumor therapy.
Thus emerge economical problems, where people decide to spend money into something that promises to diminish tumor without any certain scientific evidences. Consumers are spending a certain amount of money that could affect their economical status and situation, in empty promises or in other words, the consumers are being indirectly corrupted upon. In the final word, the BioResonance Tumor Therapy shall not be used for a cure until there are solid evidences that the theory is true and that the machine actually does help some areas in the body to develop itself a cure for the disease.
Until then, we should just look for other electromagnetic radiation therapies for medical purposes especially in regards to tumoric cancer. Bibliography “Bioresonance Therapy. ” Bioresonance Therapy. N. p. , n. d. Web. 10 Oct. 2012. <http://terrapintherapy. com/Bioresonance_therapy. html>. “BioResonance Tumor Therapy. ”
BioResonance Tumor Therapy. N. p. , n. d. Web. 10 Oct. 2012. <http://www. quackwatch. com/01QuackeryRelatedTopics/Cancer/bioresonance. html>. “CSC. ” Radio Waves in Human Tissue a??. N. p. , n. d. Web. 10 Oct. 2012. <http://www. csc. fi/english/csc/publications/cscnews/2011/2/laakso>.
“Electromagnetic Therapy. ” Electromagnetic Therapy. N. p. , n. d. Web. 10 Oct. 2012. <http://www. cancer. org/Treatment/TreatmentsandSideEffects/ComplementaryandAlternativeMedicine/ManualHealingandPhysicalTouch/electromagnetic-therapy>. “Electromagnetic Waves. ” Electromagnetic Waves. N. p. , n. d. Web. 10 Oct. 2012. <http://www. colorado. edu/physics/2000/waves_particles/index. html>. “Introduction to The Electromagnetic Spectrum. ” Introduction to the Electromagnetic Spectrum. N. p. , n. d. Web. 10 Oct. 2012. <http://missionscience. nasa. gov/ems/01_intro. html>. “Mechanical Waves.