Psychic surgeons remove tumors with their bare hands
| Psychic surgeons remove tumors with their bare hands | |
|---|---|
| FALSE | |
| "Healers in the Philippines and Brazil can reach into a patient's body with their bare hands, without cuts or anesthesia, and pull out tumors and diseased tissue." | |
| Domain | Paranormal & Supernatural |
| Tactic | Fraud or Scam Pseudoscience / Junk Science |
| Era | Historical |
| First seen | 1950s |
| Origin | Faith healers in the Philippines from the mid-20th century, promoted to foreign patients through tours and media reports |
| Last reviewed | 2026-10-29 |
| Further reading: books on Paranormal & Supernatural | |
Psychic surgery is a sleight-of-hand performance in which a "healer" appears to reach into the body and remove diseased tissue. Investigations have shown that the "tissue" is usually animal parts or blood palmed by the performer. Desperate patients, including comedian Andy Kaufman in 1984, have paid for the procedures instead of or alongside real treatment.
The claim
Healers say they open the body with spiritual energy and close it without a scar.
What the evidence shows
- Magic tricks. Magicians have reproduced psychic surgery on stage. Lab tests of "removed tissue" have identified animal material.
- Regulators. In 1975 the US Federal Trade Commission brought action against travel agencies selling psychic surgery tours, finding the practice a fraud.
- Harm. Kaufman sought psychic surgery in the Philippines for lung cancer and died months later.
Sources
- Federal Trade Commission, In re Travel King, Inc., 86 F.T.C. 715 (1975).
- James Randi, Flim-Flam! Psychics, ESP, Unicorns, and Other Delusions (Prometheus Books, 1982).