Why Beth Chapman Was Placed in a Medically-Induced Coma While Fighting Throat Cancer

Beth Chapman’s cancer battle has taken a sad turn, as she’s been put in a medically inducted coma. An oncologist — a doctor who specializes in cancer — tells us why this was necessary.

Duane “Dog” Chapman made the heartbreaking revelation on June 23 that his beloved wife Beth, 51, had been placed in a medically induced coma due to her battle with throat cancer. The Dog The Bounty Hunter star released a statement that his wife had been admitted to the ICU at Queen’s Medical Center in Hawaii on June 22 and added that his family “humbly ask everyone to please pray for Beth.” Following the announcement, HollywoodLife.com spoke to Dr. Adil Akhtar, an oncologist and palliative care expert, about what being placed in a medically induced coma entails and why it would be necessary for a patient like Beth.

“In a medically induced coma, the patients are put in a controlled state of deep unconsciousness,” Dr. Akhtar explained to us.  “It is temporary, and its purpose is to prevent brain damage as a result of trauma or lack of oxygen to the brain. In her case, since she is suffering from throat cancer, she might have developed an airway obstruction or pneumonia, causing breathing difficulty and decreased oxygenation leading to a medically induced coma to save her life.”

He explains that Beth — who he has not treated — most likely was put into a “controlled state of deep unconsciousness induced by giving drugs like Propofol, Pentobarbital and Thiopental.” In order to reverse the process, Dr. Akhtar say her doctors would again likely “wake her up, again in a controlled manner by withdrawing the drugs.” As for how long Beth could be in the medically induced coma, Dr. Akhtar says that typically patients are put under “for a short duration,” which could range from “a few days to up to two weeks.”  “But it can be done longer,” he said.

While Beth initially underwent a round of chemotherapy when her cancer came back in Nov. of 2018, she decided over the winter to turn to natural treatments, including CBD (Cannibis) oil. She explained her position in a February tweet, posting: “We need to all be far more open-minded to new treatments. Israel is leading the world in these studies. We no longer need to poison patients to get them well,” referring to rounds of chemotherapy and radiation.

However, Dr. Akhtar insists that there are no studies that have shown that CBD can control let alone cure cancer. “It is my understanding that when her cancer came back in November of last year, she did receive aggressive chemotherapy initially. The role of CBD in cancer treatment in not established, although there are studies that are ongoing. According to the American Cancer Society, so far studies have not shown CBD to help control or cure cancer,” he tells us, adding that “CBD is used to control symptoms from cancer like nausea, pain and loss of appetite.” Our thoughts are with the Chapman family during this difficult time.

Our thoughts continue to be with Beth and her family during this difficult time.