Shocking misinformation on cancer treatment. There is a statement from the MZ, MPC and oncologists

Below is the full statement:

In this statement, we present the joint position of the oncology community and the Minister of Health and the Patient Ombudsman, strongly objecting to the content contained in Mr. Jerzy Zięba's statement on anti-cancer treatment, including a comparison of the effects of chemotherapy to Zyklon B, used in the gas chambers of the Nazi death camps during World War II. This kind of content, which appeared in excerpts of statements posted in the public space, can undermine patients' trust in modern medicine and bring danger to the life or health of oncology patients.

Modern medicine has made tremendous progress in the field of oncology. Modern therapies are becoming more precise, and their effectiveness is increasing. This significantly improves patients' chances of a cure or a longer life. The drugs used today are subject to rigorous testing and are only approved for marketing after their efficacy and safety have been documented.

Systemic treatment (which includes cytotoxic drugs - that is, chemotherapy, molecularly targeted drugs and immunotherapy), is an established and scientifically proven method of treating cancer patients. It is one of the three - along with surgery and radiation therapy - primary treatments for these patients. The phrase "chemotherapy" is a common term for the treatment of any type of cancer that uses medicinal products, although these drugs use different mechanisms of action. Systemic treatment involves the use of drugs that destroy cancer cells, inhibit their growth or mobilize the patient's immune system to fight the cancer. They work at the cellular level alone or in combination with other treatments (such as radiation therapy and surgery).

An excerpt from Jerzy Zięba's statement, published on a recording posted on his x.com profile, in which he compares chemotherapy to Zyklon B, used in the gas chambers of the death camps during World War II, is deeply unethical and harmful. Such content can cause anxiety in cancer patients and their loved ones and lead them to reject effective treatments, and this can lead to the deterioration of sick patients' health and even death.

Engineer Jerzy Zięba, a graduate of the AGH University of Science and Technology in Krakow, has no medical training. Nevertheless, for many years he has been promoting theories that are not supported by sound scientific research. Neither the methods he promotes nor his recommendations are based on evidence-based medicine.

The activities of those spreading false information about treatment methods can lead to public health exposure, so we will take steps to monitor and adequately respond to such activity, working with relevant institutions and scientific societies.

Primum non nocere - first, do no harm - is one of the guiding ethical principles in medicine, which is followed by doctors and medical personnel, but which does not apply to those spreading pseudo-medical, dangerous messages that work to the detriment of patients.

We appeal to the public, and above all - to patients - to have unwavering trust in doctors and medical specialists who, every day, thanks to years of education and practice, take care of your health. Their goal is to cure the patient by offering the most effective therapies available, in which - especially in oncology - there have been remarkable advances in recent years.