A Nagpur-based Ayurvedic college has claimed that Go Vigyan – literally translated as “cow technology” – can be used to cure cancer. GoVigyan Anusandhan Kendra (GVAK) states that they have scientific proof that cow products can be used for therapeutic purposes. The doctors from GVAK brought together patients, case studies, experts and doctors from various central laboratories in a media interview, according to a news report by The Times of India. They openly challenged experts at the Tata Memorial Hospital, who said there was no evidence to support the claim that cow urine cures cancer.

It started when BJP’s Bhopal candidate Sadhvi Pragya Singh claimed that she was cured of breast cancer after she consumed cow products. She says that consuming Panchagavya (a combination of milk, ghee, yoghurt, urine and dung of cows) helped her heal. Cow Urine Can Your Protect Heart, Heal Diabetic Wounds: 5 Other Health Benefits of Gomutra.

Tata doctors, in turn, accused her of spreading misinformation and misguiding cancer patients. A doctor who operated upon her tumours also refuted her claims saying that it was surgery and not cow urine that saved her.

Vaidya Nandini Bhojraj, the dean of GVAK, said that they have hundreds of case studies to prove that cow urine can completely cure cancer. Cow-based products such as milk, ghee, gomutra (cow urine) and cow dung have reportedly played a role in “curing” many cancer patients seeking treatment at GVAK, according to the president Dr Hemant Jambhekar.

He told TOI that patients with breast cancer, oesophageal cancer and cervical cancer were “cured” of the disease after undergoing treatment at GVAK.

What is Cow Therapy?

Cow therapy refers to treating diseases using cow products. The preparation Panchagavya is five cow products – milk, ghee, yoghurt, urine and dung – mixed in specific proportions, which is believed to treat incurable diseases such as cancer.

Ayurveda has a long association with using cow products for therapeutic reasons. In recent years, Ayurvedic hospitals in Nagpur and Valsad have been treating diseases like sinusitis, allergic rhinitis and migraine using Panchagavya.

These hospitals have been carrying out treatments for as little as Re 1 and have been seeing a steady stream of patients who flock to them.

And strangely enough, there are ample testimonies from patients who have been reportedly cured of cancer. Amit Vaidya who wrote the book Holy Cancer: How a Cow Saved My Life details his journey to recovery with the help of cow therapy. The Quint had covered go vidya extensively in an article in 2015.

What Does Science Say?

Many studies on cow urine say that it has antiseptic, antimicrobial and anti-cancerous properties. Read about the many healing qualities of cow urine or gomutra. But do these qualities mean gomutra is a panacea as naturopaths and holistic healers claim? Science isn’t 100 percent in on the claim.

While it’s true that cow urine does have certain therapeutic qualities, it’s not any different from the urine of other animals say experts.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on May 08, 2019 08:00 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).