Watch Second Opinion: Laetrile at Sloan-Kettering

In 1977, a cancer patient named Ralph Moss was working at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center as a science writer. He discovered that the hospital was suppressing a promising cancer treatment called Laetrile, which was made from apricot pits. The hospital had conducted clinical trials on Laetrile, but they concluded that the treatment was ineffective and dangerous. Moss was skeptical of this finding and did some investigating of his own.

Fast forward to the present day, and Moss has teamed up with filmmaker Eric Merola to make a documentary about his experience. The movie, titled Second Opinion: Laetrile at Sloan-Kettering, is a fascinating inside look at the politics of cancer research and how scientific discoveries can be suppressed by powerful institutions.

The film begins with Moss recounting his discovery of Laetrile and his meetings with doctors and administrators at Sloan-Kettering. He was shocked to find that they had deliberately distorted the results of their clinical trials to make Laetrile seem ineffective. Moss began to research Laetrile on his own, talking to patients who had taken the treatment and doing his own analysis of the data. He found that Laetrile was actually quite effective at treating cancer, especially when used in conjunction with other therapies.

The movie also delves into the history of Laetrile as a cancer treatment. The substance was first discovered in the 1940s by Dr. Ernst Krebs Jr., who believed that cancer was caused by a deficiency of vitamin B17 (which is found in high concentrations in apricot pits). Laetrile came to be seen as a potential "miracle cure" for cancer, and many cancer patients began seeking it out as an alternative to chemotherapy and radiation.

However, Laetrile was also controversial. The FDA had not approved it as a cancer treatment, and many doctors and scientists were skeptical of its effectiveness. Sloan-Kettering's clinical trials were meant to determine whether Laetrile was a legitimate treatment or just another quack remedy.

The movie explores both sides of the Laetrile debate, interviewing doctors and scientists who were skeptical of the treatment as well as patients who had been helped by it. The filmmakers also delve into the political and economic factors that may have contributed to the suppression of Laetrile. They suggest that the pharmaceutical industry and the medical establishment had a vested interest in maintaining the status quo of chemotherapy and radiation as the primary cancer treatments.

Second Opinion: Laetrile at Sloan-Kettering is a thought-provoking and deeply personal documentary. Moss's story is inspiring, and the film raises important questions about the role of science and politics in medicine. The cinematography is simple but effective, allowing the interviews and archival footage to speak for themselves. The pacing is good, and the movie never feels dull or preachy.

Overall, Second Opinion: Laetrile at Sloan-Kettering is a must-watch for anyone interested in the history and politics of cancer research. It's a powerful reminder that scientific discoveries can be suppressed, and that patients deserve access to all the information and options available to them.

Second Opinion: Laetrile at Sloan-Kettering is a 2014 drama with a runtime of 1 hour and 16 minutes. It has received mostly poor reviews from critics and viewers, who have given it an IMDb score of 8.1 and a MetaScore of 43.