[Megamin, faith, hope and placebos---a critical review]

Megamin is a registered nutriceutical in Croatia. Allegedly, it consists mostly of a naturally occurring zeolite (aluminum silicate) ion-exchange material tagged with vitamins and minerals. Mass-media claimed that Megamin possessed strong anticancer properties although it had not been tested through an appropriate, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, crossover clinical trial. The paper uses Megamin as a paradigmatic model to discuss how higher neurocognitive functions like hope and faith may be related to the placebo effect and give an illusion of symptomatic well being without supporting evidence in the objective signs of the disease. The only plausible role of Megamin is that it reduces gastrointestinal toxic burden by affecting the anaerobic fermenting processes after digestion of food and by removing harmful metabolites after medical treatment of cancer and/or liver and kidney organ failure. The psychological effect of unwarranted mass-media claims about the beneficial role of Megamin in cancer treatment is scrutinized.