Daniel Hauser case: goin' good so far (mostly)

It's been over a month since the beginning of the Daniel Hauser chemotherapy refusenik saga, which has taken a number of risky and chaotic twists and turns along the way. To refresh your memories: he's the homeschooled and totally illiterate 13-year-old boy who's been diagnosed with Hodgkin's lymphoma, which is actually good news if you're to get cancer as it's one of the easiest to treat and cure – if you catch and treat it on time. However, the problem is that Hauser's parents were ardent naturopaths and preferred to treat their ailing son with "herbs and vitamins" – which, of course, they'd heard of "on the Internet". rather than force him to undertake chemotherapy. Daniel had already undergone one round of chemo previously, and not only had it treated him horribly and made him sick to his stomach (and beyond), it also seemingly scared him as he remembered his aunt dying while undergoing chemo herself. This pushed him and his parents (particularly his mother who was intent on helping her son escape the evil clutches of them medicine workers) to fall back on that failed "Freedom of Religion" excuse, claiming they were members of the notoriously fake-sounding pseudo-American-Indian religion of "Nemenhah" which, of course, promoted the use of woo rather than actual (or "conventional") medicine.

However, light finally shone for a moment as the courts ordered Hauser to undergo chemotherapy whether he liked it or not, ruling he had been "medically neglected", despite Hauser's previous threats to resist, literally "kicking and screaming". However, things quickly took a turn for the worst when he and his mother went on the lam to evade treatment, apparently heading for Mexico. Thankfully however, after a few days reason prevailed (again) and Daniel was finally placed under chemotherapy – for good this time.

It's now being reported that Hauser is actually going quite well in his treatment and is making a great recovery – even though they're crediting their persisting use of woo for the drastic reduction of the tumor so far. Not exactly unexpected, but ... *sigh*.

NEW ULM, Minn. (AP) — A 13-year-old boy with cancer who fled Minnesota to avoid chemotherapy said he was angry about a judge’s ruling today he must continue getting the treatment after court documents showed his tumor has shrunk significantly.

Daniel Hauser was not at the court hearing but later told The Associated Press he had hoped he would be able to stop chemotherapy, which he said makes him ill.

“I get really sick when I do it,” the teen said during an interview at his family’s farm at Sleepy Eye. “You get so dizzy and I get a headache right away.”

Daniel said he believes his tumor’s improvement comes from alternative treatments he’s doing such as supplemental drinks and pills.

His parents also remain concerned about the risks of chemotherapy, which they initially rejected for religious reasons, saying it harms the body. But they told Brown County Judge John Rodenberg during the today's hearing that they would take their son to a Wednesday chemo appointment.

Colleen Hauser told the AP at her home that doctors said it would take six months to treat her son’s Hodgkin’s lymphoma when he was first diagnosed, but they’ve now seen improvement in the past few weeks.

“Wow,” she said. “Something’s working.”

But when asked if she credits the chemotherapy, she said, “I’m not going to say it’s not, but I just want to make it clear that I would like a better plan, a better treatment plan, for Danny.”

Eh, as long as Daniel's cured and lives, I don't really give a shit if he thanks his magic water or herbs, the chemo (that's bloody likely), the stars of Buddha's slim third cousin for being alive and well, just as long as he is. Though, having a cancer survivor claiming he survived because of woo ... That might not be a good thing after all, for all those other cancer patients who might start to rethink about undergoing chemotherapy.