Val Kilmer Believed Faith Would Heal His Throat Cancer; His Daughter Pushed For Surgery

However, his daughter Mercedes shared that Kilmer didn’t initially plan to explore conventional treatment, and pushed aside her pleas to get a growing lump in his throat checked out  believing his Christian Science faith would heal the tumors. However, in 2017 he was rushed to the hospital when his tumor burst. He wasn’t diagnosed with stage 4 throat cancer until that hospital visit.

Related: Throat Cancer Survivor, Val Kilmer, Chose His Family Over Religion By Going Through Chemo Treatment "I Just Didn't Want To Experience Their Fear"

“People had really wanted him to get it attended to but he had faith in his body's ability to fight it off. It was obvious he was sick but he didn't want to go to the doctor, which I respect. He wanted to do things his way,” Mercedes says.

While she acknowledged his faith was important, she pushed for him to undergo the tracheotomy, which ended up being successful but damaged his voice significantly. Kilmer himself has stated he decided to go through chemotherapy against his Christian Science faith in order to assuage his children’s fear.

"I just didn't want to experience their fear, which was profound," Kilmer told The New York Times in May. "I would've had to go away, and I just didn't want to be without them."

Dr. Brian Berman explains the difference between integrative medicine and alternative medicine

How Faith Helps Patients Cope With A Cancer Diagnosis

When it comes to treatment, conventional therapies are always the route patients should turn to. However, it’s very important to find ways to cope with the mental toll a diagnosis can leave on someone, and many survivors say that their faith was invaluable in keeping them positive and feeling uplifted.

Sharonda Vincent discovered a lump in her breast just one month before her wedding date, and the day before her thirtieth before. Understandably, her breast cancer diagnosis threw a huge wrench in her future plans, and she admits she felt like she was being punished in some way. However, she knew she needed to push past that mindset in order to successfully go through treatment, so she turned to an outlet she has always relied on  faith.

Related: "My Faith Has Been Very Important" Louisville Ovarian Cancer Survivor Monica Layton's Story

“One night I was just laying there in bed, and I had a talk with God,” says Sharonda. “And I knew that if I just put my faith and trust in God, that I would be OK.”

Breast cancer survivor Sharonda Vincent says faith helped her keep fighting through treatment

While Sharonda put her faith in God to get her through treatment, she still underwent six rounds of chemotherapy, radiation, and hormone replacement. The battle was difficult, but her faith helped her put her trust in the medical team in order to be declared “cancer-free.”

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