The “Miracle Water” of Kamateros: The fraud that flooded Greece with false hope of beating cancer

“It is not sorrow that breaks us, but mislaid hope,” Balzac declared successful his Human Comedy successful the 1830s — capturing successful a fewer words the powerfulness of 1 of humanity’s halfway elements: hope, which builds dreams erstwhile calved and shatters them loudly erstwhile it dies. Nearly fractional a period since the ungraded of Kamateros’ “miracle water,” history has not forgiven the antheral who implanted a anticipation for beingness successful the hearts of thousands — and past destroyed it astatine its peak.

The News Breaks

It’s February 9, 1976, erstwhile newspapers diagnostic a header that stirs the public: “A water, coming from a outpouring successful Kos, is believed to cure cancer!” The “miracle water” was discovered by 36-year-old lawyer from Kos, Giorgos Kamateros, with his main partner, entrepreneur Kostas Gratsos. In reality, arsenic Kamateros aboriginal revealed, it was not the h2o that was miraculous, but a pink-colored mineral helium had recovered adjacent the “Mecca” outpouring of Kos. He had named it “Helion”, and claimed that erstwhile crushed and dissolved into immoderate water, it gave it healing properties. Kamateros further claimed helium had transported a important quantity of the powdered mineral to Athens successful special containers, hidden successful secret locations astir the city.

A State Caught Off Guard

The Greek authorities was caught asleep astatine the wheel. The state was inactive fragile and recovering from the dictatorship of the Colonels. With galore unresolved nationalist issues, a “messiah” offering anticipation was seen by galore arsenic a sign of the times. And the communicative sold newspapers. A lukewarm connection by the Ministry of Social Services, urging “caution,” was not capable to dilatory down Kamateros, who flooded the headlines with interviews and bold claims:
That helium had found the cure for cancer, spreading false hope to radical suffering from the “disease of the century.”

The Plan Was Long successful Motion

In truth, the “discovery” had been in the works for immoderate time. Kamateros and Gratsos had cautiously cultivated it, relying connected word of mouth to dispersed the rumor. They had already begun distributing the merchandise “hand to hand.” “On the upland slope of my village, successful the h2o of the crystal-clear spring, inactive children chasing the Sun… Immersed successful happiness. Blessed beryllium the crystal-clear outpouring of my village, blessed the years erstwhile we could unrecorded successful the Sun. Lost dreams… The Wind defeated the Sun of my Crystal Spring. I was told the outpouring has present dried… And I remained thirsty for agelong […] Hope took a fewer steps back. The Crystal Spring burst distant wrong maine — and I became the root of my ain hope.” This poetic passage, and galore much similar it, was written by Kamateros arsenic aboriginal arsenic September 1962, seemingly foreshadowing his concern thought — oregon obsession — with a “miraculous product” that would shingle the world.

The Press Conference

At a press conference held connected February 11, 1976, Gratsos announced: “As of November 6, 1972, a 12-member radical of Greek scientists became alert of the absolute healing properties of this h2o for crab — and not conscionable that.” However, helium added that “National and highly Hellenic reasons” prevented them from revealing the names of the scientists oregon immoderate further details. So a lawyer and an entrepreneur were announcing, connected behalf of unnamed experts, a medical miracle! “Even conscionable considering the backgrounds of the ‘inventors’ should person raised skepticism. Because adjacent if we judge that galore discoveries hap by chance, they inactive travel from scientists. […] That benignant of communal consciousness should person been capable to support one’s skepticism toward the Kamateros-Gratsos duo,”noted writer Lykourgos Kominis successful his publication “The Crisis of the Greek Press.”

BEATINGS FOR A FEW DROPS OF “MIRACLE WATER”

But due to the fact that “hope is simply a earthy signifier of irrationality,” it tin easy pb you down unsmooth and treacherous paths. As agelong arsenic the myth is sustained—by the state’s awkward silence, which fails to explicitly debunk it, and by the press, which has recovered successful it a sensational fashionable story—the suffering anonymous masses proceed to anticipation for a cure. Newspaper publishers ticker their sales skyrocket, reaching dizzying numbers—up to 500,000 copies daily! “Yesterday’s ‘A’ sold retired – Circulated successful 300,000 copies,” headlines Apogevmatini, portion connected February 18, Ta Nea — which had agelong chosen to “pour h2o into the mill” of the communicative — announced their ain initiative: “Test connected critically sick diligent with the anti-cancer h2o – In 60 hours we’ll know…”
(Note: The trial would aboriginal travel backmost negative). The paper adjacent sent samples of the h2o to large planetary probe centers. “Since the authorities did not presume its rightful role, ‘Ta Nea’ steps in—not to enactment the ‘inventors’ and the ‘invention’, but the Greek radical who are anxious and rightly request to cognize the truth,” the insubstantial wrote.

The nonfiction from Ta Nea. Newspapers of the clip saw their income soar.

TANKER TRUCKS AND DESPERATE CROWDS

Meanwhile, Kamateros and Gratsos signifier water distributions utilizing tanker trucks, with locations announced a time successful advance. The quality of the “miracle water” is swallowed whole by hordes of people, who don’t hesitate to stand for hours successful the cold, oregon adjacent resort to violence implicit who gets the precious liquid first.

Distribution of the “miracle water” by tanker truck

Police, summoned to reconstruct order, fail to power the frenzied crowds. Thousands of people, arriving from all corners of the country, garbage to permission empty-handed. Kamateros has created full chaos.

THE AUTHORITIES STEP IN

The Chief Prosecutor of the Athens Court of First Instance, Spyros Kaninias, orders a preliminary probe and requests that samples of the h2o beryllium tested by the State Laboratory for Drug Control (KEEF) and the National Center for Scientific Research “Demokritos.”

KAMATEROS: “I WANTED TO OPEN A TRIPE SOUP SHOP IN THE CITY”

The concern spins retired of control, prompting Kamateros to hold a property conference astatine a hotel successful Syntagma Square. When repeatedly asked by journalists however helium justifies, as idiosyncratic with nary aesculapian background, promising cures for superior illnesses, his reply stuns everyone: “God chose maine precisely due to the fact that I’m not a doctor. I had 1 ambition: to unfastened a tripe crockery store successful Istanbul. But you see, the work for this miracle, for each eternity, was fixed solely to me.” He besides claims helium discovered the h2o successful 1957, and lone realized it was radioactive successful 1972. He explains that the spring successful question has 5 oregon six outlets, but lone one contains radioactivity. He talks astir “variations successful the velocity of mass,” of a “water molecule interacting with velocity and time,” and overmuch more—statements truthful absurd that science simply throws up its hands. He concludes, successful a narcissistic tone: “We—that is, I—have definitively solved the occupation of cancer.” His spouse Gratsos chimes in, claiming that the 2 of them have: “Overturned accepted subject and the pharmaceutical establishment,” and adjacent reveals that they person hidden capable of the substance to supply escaped attraction to 100 cardinal patients worldwide!

A DELIRIUM OUTSIDE LOGIC

The delusional rant is obvious, but erstwhile you’re selling hope, you volition always find consenting customers.
Especially erstwhile that anticipation is hanging regular successful bold headlines from each newsstand successful the country…Newspapers proceed to fuel the story successful pursuit of readership. Very fewer support a cautious editorial line.

“Eleftherotypia” reports that parents of 18 children, hospitalized with leukemia and different neoplastic diseases astatine the “Aglaia Kyriakou” hospital, stopped accepted attraction and supplied their children with Kamateros’s h2o — resulting successful 1 child’s decease and a deterioration successful the information of the others.

The request for authorities involution is urgent. The request to devour the “miraculous” h2o — and notably without simultaneous medication of medicines — has made the lawsuit highly dangerous. Kamateros is summoned to the Ministry of Social Services to contiguous the technological grounds helium claims to possess, which supposedly certifies the product’s peculiar properties. He appears but refuses to supply immoderate information. “That mode I would confess that Helion is simply a drug. But nary 1 said it is simply a drug. Nor that crab is simply a disease. Helion is simply a instrumentality and crab is an ailment. I person 1 cardinal nonsubjective pieces of grounds to deliver,” (!) helium says. On February 20, an bid is issued for his bringing earlier a authoritative arsenic portion of the investigation. When journalists inquire him astir this, helium replies: “They cannot apprehension me. Even if they nonstop an full service to drawback me, they volition not succeed. The brave past successful battle; they are not killed.” Meanwhile, the “brave” antheral and his spouse are making a fortune. Now, successful the sanction of bid and dignity, they person withdrawn the tanker trucks and merchantability Helion sometimes successful ampoules and sometimes successful small bottled waters for 20 drachmas. The regular scheduled income points statesman to instrumentality a imperishable spot successful paper columns adjacent to the classifieds! Sales are usually conducted successful churchyards to connote the “holiness” of the matter… The “miraculous water” provokes a frenzy, periodically reinforced by published statements from doctors who judge its healing properties and by celebrities who assertion to person tried it and been “cured.

Kamateros with Gkizela Dali. The histrion claimed: “I had pharynx crab and could lone emit inarticulate cries. Thanks to the water, I americium good and preparing to instrumentality to the theatre.”

On March 15, Nicos Stavridis, suffering from a superior oculus disease, declares that aft drinking the miraculous h2o for 5 days helium was cured and tin present drive, portion his workfellow Gkizela Dali, successful an interview, assures: “I had pharynx crab and could lone utter inarticulate cries. Thanks to the water, I americium good and preparing to instrumentality to the theatre.” The pistillate volition successful immoderate lawsuit aboriginal retrieve from the disease, years afterwards. A tailwind fills Kamateros’s sails; helium adjacent organizes marches to Parliament, protesting those politicians who distrust his… acquisition to humanity. The water’s “therapeutic properties” present widen to curing blindness! Members of his squad person acceptable up a property office, from which they pass the nationalist astir the organisation days and hours and denote that the h2o adjacent cures the blind! On February 23 the findings of KEEF (State Laboratory for Drug Control) and Demokritos are made public. KEEF’s study concludes: “We cannot find that this is potable (i.e., drinking) water, fixed that it whitethorn beryllium contaminated,” portion Demokritos’s study notes: “All measured radioactivity values are wrong the ranges usually observed successful earthy biology waters and truthful bash not contiguous peculiar involvement from the constituent of presumption of radioactivity.” “I nary longer person the slightest uncertainty that the full substance of the h2o is comical,” comments wryly the Deputy Minister of Social Insurance, Nikolaos Brisimis — to which Kamateros replies provocatively: “Mr. Deputy Minister, I slander you and insult you.” Despite the government’s present categorical stance and the cool, detached code of parts of the property toward the phenomenon, the quality of the “miraculous water” is swallowed full by hordes of people, who bash not hesitate to basal for hours successful the acold astatine organisation points oregon adjacent combat implicit who volition get the precious liquid first. Its expected therapeutic spot has taken connected the quality of a panacea. It is recommended for each illness — and besides for prevention and bully health.

A DRUG FOR EVERY DISEASE…

On March 18, successful a queue of radical stretching from the Nea Filadelfeia stadium to Nea Ionia, Kamateros distributes the merchandise on with his blessings for a bully life. The organisation lasts six hours and adjacent includes AEK players who person a greeting grooming session. Football stars hold patiently successful line. None of the gathered assemblage cares astir them. The contented is the water. Hope triumphs for a fewer much days — and erstwhile it comes clip for it to die, it is torn down noisily by the precise antheral who inspired it…

On March 23, astatine the Liosia shot stadium, Kamateros speaks to 8,000 radical who came to perceive him. He says helium bets connected the people’s emotion to springiness him spot to: 1) instrumentality the City, 2) reconstruct the king to his position, 3) erase the land Sasona of Albania, which Greece ceded to the neighboring state successful 1914, and subsequently 4) hitch retired Turkey and possibly Siberia! “My hands volition go fists for the communists, the dissenters, and each those who enactment against the interests of our Greece!” The disillusioned assemblage disperses silently. Hope fades, to vanish wholly successful the pursuing days.