Traditional Chinese Medicine Archives

Book Review: A Handbook of Chinese Hematology by Simon Becker

A Handbook of Chinese Hematology by Simon Becker, Blue Poppy
Press, ISBN
1-891845-16-0, is one of those books that seeks to build a
bridge between
TCM and Western medicine.

The first part of the book deals with the Western definition of
blood. I
can recommend this section for anyone who is premed or who will
be taking
anatomy and physiology to become a nurse, a lab technician, etc.
It goes
into the types of blood cells, the physiology of how they
originate in the
body, what blood does from the Western standpoint, and what
various lab
tests of blood mean. Most people won't absorb all the
information in this
section at one sitting - or even several - but if one wants to
learn about
blood from the Western standpoint, this is one place to do it.

The next chapter deals with "Chinese Medicinals in the Treatment
of Blood
Diseases." This chapter contains some pluses even for those who
have copies
of Chinese Materia Medicas (books of healing substances used in
TCM) in that
it goes into some specific effects that TCM herbs have on blood.
This is
information above and beyond what is commonly found in a Materia
Medica, and
it's specific to blood disorders.

As you read this chapter, keep in mind that doctors in China are
not
ignorant of Western anatomy and physiology or Western-defined
medical
problems. It's their research and studies which are making
books like this
possible.

There is a brief chapter on "Acupuncture in the Treatment of
Blood Diseases"
though Becker makes it plain throughout the chapter that this is
NOT the
treatment of blood disorders in China. When it is used, it's
strictly
experimental and used as an adjunct to herbal therapies.

The second part of the book goes into the details of the TCM
Roots which may
be present in various Western-defined blood disorders.

I want to point out for those new to TCM that TCM syndromes very
rarely
correspond to Western-defined medical conditions, and blood
disorders are no
exception. What TCM healers analyze and treat are TCM
imbalances, NOT
Western-defined medical conditions.

Take the example of iron deficiency anemia. A person who
receives a Western
diagnosis of iron deficiency anemia from a Western physician may
have one or
more of several different TCM syndromes. These are 1.
Spleen-Stomach
Vacuity (Deficiency) Weakness pattern, 2. Qi and Blood (the TCM
definition
of Blood, not the Western definition of blood) Dual Vacuity
(Deficiency)
pattern, 3. Liver Blood Insufficiency pattern, 4. Spleen-Kidney
Yang Vacuity
(Deficiency) Pattern, 5. Blood Vacuity with Fire & Dryness
pattern, 6.
Liver-Kidney Depletion & Detriment with Non-transformation of
Blood by
Essence (Jing) pattern, and 7. Accumulation & Lodging of
Intestinal Worms
pattern. One or more of these 7 will be present in a person who
has iron
deficiency anemia.

What works for one of these TCM Roots may do nothing for another
and may
make another worse. For example if the healer hasn't determined
correctly
the TCM imbalance and gives the treatment for Spleen-Kidney Yang
Deficiency
to someone who is suffering from Blood Deficiency with Fire and
Dryness
pattern, the treatment for Yang Deficiency is going to make
Blood Deficiency
AND Fire and Dryness worse. Much worse. TCM stresses
identifying Roots and
treating those, not willy-nilly treating symptoms.

Either Kidney Yang Deficiency, or Kidney Yin Deficiency, or
joint Yin and
Yang Deficiency will be found in people who have chronic
aplastic anemia.

Some of the hematological disorders covered in this book are
sickle cell
anemia, hemolytic anemia, Thalassemia, anemia due to renal
failure,
megaloblastic anemia, polycythemia vera, leukopenia, the
leukemias,
lymphomas, idiopathic thrombocytopenic purpura, allergic
purpura,
hemophilia, and purpura simplex. I was disappointed that the
chapter on
mononucleosis (glandular fever) only covers acute mono and not
chronic mono
though there are some mentions of recurring problems after acute
mono if the
problem isn't successfully treated.

There also are some dietary recommendations in the book.

I wish Becker had included a section on the TCM definition of
Blood (as
opposed to the Western definition of blood) and gone into TCM
Blood
imbalances more. There are references throughout the book to
some of them
under the TCM syndromes. (For example, Heat in the Blood crops
up a lot.)
My personal opinion is that the book would be even stronger and
even more of
a reference guide if he had. This book is a professional/
student level TCM
book written for people who already know the basics of TCM but
lack a total
understanding of Western blood physiology and want to bridge the
gap. But
this also is a book for Western physicians and other Western
healthcare
professionals who want to learn more about TCM. It would be an
even better
book with a section going into some detail on Blood and TCM
Blood
imbalances.

(Book review written under my penname on another list.)

Re: Book Review: A Handbook of Chinese Hematology by Simon Becker (Archive in TCM.)