Christina Dixon took her daughter out of the state of Oregon to avoid treating her cancer with traditional methods such as surgery and chemotherapy, now she’s turned herself into police and is facing charges of first-degree custodial interference and first-degree criminal mistreatment, The Oregonian reports.
Dixon wanted to treat her 13-year-old daughter’s liver cancer with CBD oil and other naturopathic methods in spite of the fact that a doctor had prescribed surgery and chemotherapy for the teenager. When a court ordered her to submit her daughter to be treated, she left the state to pursue her own alternative methods. Her daughter, Kylee, is now in state custody and living with a foster family.
Dixon insists her methods have gotten results. Speaking to KGW-TV, she says that vitamins, herbs, and CBD oil are effective in the battle against cancer.
“The only reason I’m in this position is because I stood up for my daughter’s life when she was on her last breath,” Dixon said. “I’m literally getting punished for saving my daughter’s life.”
There is no evidence that CBD oil or other naturopathic remedies are effective in fighting cancer. According to Harvard Medical School’s Peter Grinspoon, people who solely rely on CBD for serious diseases such as cancer tend to gravitate towards other forms of pseudoscience, such as the belief that vaccines are linked to autism. He added that the still-evolving science behind CBD “is very intriguing and suggestive.”
“It’s just magical thinking to think that CBD is going to cure a large solid tumor,” Grinspoon told The Oregonian. “We can’t say for sure it won’t, but we have no evidence it will. And certainly it could put a child’s life in danger.”
Dixon’s case is reminiscent of a story out of Florida where a couple asked a court to allow them to treat their toddler’s acute lymphoblastic leukemia with alternative methods, which would have included medical cannabis, diet, and vitamin supplements. The judge ruled that Taylor Bland and Joshua McAdams could continue with their alternative therapies while their child undergoes chemotherapy, a ruling the parents said was “disappointing.”
Dixon is chronicling her daughter’s story on a Facebook page titled, “Kylee’s Fight.” According to The Oregonian, Kylee shares her mother’s wishes and wants to continue the alternative treatment. Experts say the chances of stopping the spread of Kylee’s cancer with traditional methods is 70%.
Dixon has been released from jail and is awaiting a hearing set for August 19.
Featured image via Clackamas County Sheriff’s Office
