Dr. C. P. Mathew: Kerala’s Cancer Care Pioneer Who Defied Convention

Kerala’s first medical oncologist, Dr. C. P. Mathew, MBBS, MS, DMR, was a pioneer in oncology as well as in integrative medicine when it came to treating cancer.

Dr. C. P. Mathew continued to see and care for patients with unwavering dedication until just days before his passing, embodying his lifelong belief that healing is a sacred duty. He hardly accumulated any wealth throughout his medical career spanning five decades and was ready to learn and unlearn everything from his early life to try and find cures for his patients, which sometimes made him a subject of ridicule among his peers. Regardless, he kept going.

Dr. C. P. Mathew was born to CM Paul and Catherine in Chirakkakadavu, Kottayam, Kerala on 2 September, 1929.

He reportedly took his studies seriously from high school since he wanted to get into medicine. Travancore State had no medical colleges back then, but had 5 reserved seats in Madras Medical College. He got in and completed his MBBS from the prestigious Madras Medical College in 1954.

After graduating, he was enlisted to Travancore Cochin State Health service and was posted at a civil hospital in Trichur and later at Viyyur Central Jail in Thrissur, Kerala as jail medical officer till 1957.

Later he was appointed as radiology tutor in Trivandrum Medical college and while in that position was selected for post graduate diploma in radiation in Madras Medical College in 1958.

He relocated to Trivandrum Medical College in 1960 after pg diploma and was transferred to Calicut medical college where he served 3 years.

Afterwards he pursued his post-graduation degree in MS surgery, from Trivandrum Medical College in 1965. After serving as assistant professor of radiology in other two medical colleges, he came back to Kottayam medical college in 1973 and served there for 13 years and retired from government service as Vice- principal of Kottayam medical college.

He was the first to introduce brachytherapy in India, which involved placing radioactive materials inside or near the tumor to treat cancer by providing higher radiation doses at the tumor site.

He also suggested the protocol of combining radiation and chemotherapy for uterine cancer in India.

He advocated avoiding surgery in colon cancer, as he believed it would increase the rate of spread in those cases. However, he always advised surgery in cases of prostate cancer.

During his service in Trivandrum Medical College, he saved many cancer patients who sought care at RCC.

He served as head of oncology at all three government medical colleges at that time in Kerala (Kottayam, Calicut, Trivandrum).

But this was only the beginning of his career as an oncologist.

A turning point came during his practice as an oncologist in Kottayam Medical College. He met a patient who had been sent home by them for palliative care after a terminal cancer diagnosis, only to find him in robust health just a few weeks later.

He was perplexed, and on inquiry, learned about the Siddha medicine given by a wandering Vaidyan/Lada-guru that had cured the patient. He wanted to learn about the medicine and kept an eye out to meet the Vaidyan. He soon learned that the Siddha practitioner had come to a nearby place to make another home visit and drove to meet him. But the Siddhar was very reserved and didn’t give out much information about his medicine or practices. So, Dr. Mathew applied for leave and decided to accompany him to Tamil Nadu to dive deep into studying the alternative medicine. He travelled into forests from which the herbs were acquired, learned firsthand from the guru, and returned with a sample of the medicine.

Upon return, he contacted some Siddha physicians and learned that the medicine was 'Navapashanam', made from nine specific poisonous herbs and minerals said to possess healing and spiritual properties. It is the same substance with which Lord Murugan's idol (Hindu deity) is made in the famous Palani temple, Tamil Nadu.

The idol was made by Boganathar, a Siddha saint.

Surprisingly, the majority of these formulations are prepared using heavy metals like mercury and arsenic. But let’s not forget, arsenic was earlier used to treat syphilis in modern medicine too, and it was considered the only cure in the 20th century.

After retiring from Kerala Government service in 1986 as a senior cancer specialist, he subjected himself to Upanayana (from the head of the mana), a sacred thread ceremony, which is a Hindu ritual way of initiation into the study of the Vedas, at Suryakaladi Mana, located in Kottayam. Suryakaladi Mana is an ancient Brahmin family, considered the last word in Vedas and tantric rituals in Kerala.

The rest of his life he dedicated to learning the Vedas, Upanishads, Ayurveda, Siddha, and Homeopathy seriously and developed his own integrated treatment protocol.

But he didn’t get enough support from his fellow colleagues since modern medicine considered alternative medicine quackery and a waste of time devoid of proper scientific research and backing.

Practicing Siddha medicine and similar forms of rural alternative medicine in India was banned under the Travancore-Cochin Medical Practitioners’ Act of 1953, and this was reinforced in 2018 by the Supreme Court of India. The Act required that qualified medical practitioners be trained at a recognized institution, and be registered and displayed on a list of valid physician practitioners. The Gazette list did not recognize practitioners of Siddha medicine since they were not considered trained and qualified in any institution. So, they were considered quacks.

From the 1980s onward, Dr. Mathew maintained detailed case diaries at his home clinic documenting how he cured many terminally ill patients whom modern medicine had abandoned. These records include more than 4,000 individual patient case notes, chronicling his integrative approaches and outcomes.

His patients included those even rejected by Mayo Clinic and a former Chief Minister of Kerala. He treated more than 6,000 patients successfully in his post-retirement period.

Many times, he advised against some treatment protocols followed by Regional Cancer Centre (RCC), Trivandrum, for some patient cases. He wrote dozens of letters to integrate AYUSH into cancer management and to start research regarding the same. He was very vocal about this goal until the end of his life.

He criticised the RCC for not being prepared to do research in the Siddha system even though it was providing miraculous results in his integrative practice. He accused them of wasting crores of rupees on chemotherapy and remaining rigid in their unwillingness to try a different approach.

He faced threats from the Indian Medical Association (IMA), including the possibility of revoking his medical license, for integrating AYUSH practices into cancer treatment and openly advocating their use. Yet, the stories of his recovered patients told a different tale.

Since 2003, he offered consultations at Cherian Ashram in Kottayam, his clinic, where comprehensive records of these treatments are still preserved, and his students continue to serve the patients.

His work, though unconventional, made a significant impact on integrative cancer treatment in India.

The last 44 years of Dr. C. P. Mathew’s life after retirement tell a remarkable story of scientific curiosity, unconventional thinking, and the courage to walk a path few dared to tread, even in the face of skepticism and criticism. With quiet perseverance and self-study, he developed integrative oncology protocols that offered renewed hope and life to terminally ill cancer patients who had been deemed beyond help by conventional medicine.

Dr. C. P. Mathew always practiced medicine without promoting his methods. It was through word of mouth from his healed patients that more came in search of him at his clinic.

He was felicitated with the Golden Leaf Award, instituted by a social service group, Servants of Nature, for his service to society in a function held at the Press Club in Thiruvananthapuram in June 2016 by the former Chief Minister of Kerala, Oommen Chandy.

In 2021, the Rashtriya Ayurveda Vidyapeetham and the National Institute of Siddha conferred upon him the Lifetime Achievement Award for his contributions in cancer care.

On October 19, 2021, Dr. C. P. Mathew passed away at the age of 92. As per his wishes and spiritual beliefs, he was cremated in Changanacherry, Kottayam, according to Hindu rites. His elder son, Mohan, and student, Dr. Sreejith, performed the last Hindu rites under guidance from the Suryakaladi Mana.

He leaves behind a treasure trove of clinical data, a legacy of compassionate care, and an inspiring model for thinking beyond boundaries in medical science.

References:

1. Rammanohar Puthiyedath, Manohar Gundeti, Prajeesh Nath Edamala Narayanan, and Srikanth Narayanam. “Learnings from a Veteran Oncologist’s Long‑Standing Efforts in Integrative Oncology.” Journal of Ayurveda and Integrative Medicine (preprint, 2022). https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10105233/ scholar.google.com+1pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov+1staging-english.mathrubhumi.com+10pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov+10researchgate.net+10

2. Seshadri, Hiramalini. “Remembering the Father of Integrative Medicine – Prof. Dr C P Mathew.” Mathrubhumi, October 19, 2022. https://english.mathrubhumi.com/features/health-archives/remembering-the-father-of-integrative-medicine-prof-dr-cp-mathew-oncologist-cancer-treatment-fa66d835

3. Cherian Ashram. “Talk by Our Founder Late Dr C P Mathew.” YouTube. Accessed June 25, 2025. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xnzt-yny-gA.

_MSM