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Doing the least to save your life...

Ducky

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<table cellspacing=1 cellpadding=6 bgcolor=#666699 border=0><tr><td bgcolor=white><font face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif" color=#666699 size=2><b>Introduction by Luke T.:  </b><i>

We are witnessing an explosion of pushers of magic pills, waters, and elixirs reminiscent of the travelling snake oil salesmen of the late 19th century. Cure-all books which upon close examination we find have no cures in them, and are nothing but a bounty of vitriol for the modern science which has lengthened our lifespans.

For those unfortunates who are sentenced with a life-threatening disease, it is a time of vulnerability and desperation. Here is one man's personal war against a host of predators waiting to exploit that fear.

"There's no substitute for guts." - Bear Bryant

Link to original topic</i></font></td></tr></table>



My paper.

It's not written as well as it could have been. It's not as scientific, in that it does not go point by point through alternative medicines and treatments, as it could have been. It's not very polite at times.

It's my story, and it's how I feel about those that would offer me alternative medicine in lieu of proper medical treatments for my cancer.

Read at your leisure. I hope you enjoy it. There's some great pictures of my spine in there, both before the surgery and after.

I'll quote a little here:

I spent the next few months learning to walk again. I underwent 24 sessions of radiation therapy and several bone marrow biopsies, MRI scans, CT scans, bone surveys (which are essentially an x-ray of every part of you from several angles), and blood tests. You see, Solitary Plasmacytoma of Bone has a 50% chance of progressing to Multiple Myeloma in 10 years. Once that progression has happened, 37% of those diagnosed make it past 5 years. Currently, there is a second tumor forming in my right arm, but with the help of my hard working doctors, it was found early and will be treated.
Because of all the hard work of my nuerosurgeon, oncologist, nurses, and me I was walking again by February of 2005 without a cane and had returned to work at a new job. A job that now pays for medical insurance.
Without the scientific method none of my treatments would have been available to save me. 100 years ago I would have died as an infant, and 50 years ago I would have been paralyzed - if not dead. What I mean specifically is that without properly blinded studies, peer reviewed publication, the removal of emotion when gathering knowledge (removing confirmation bias and cherry picking of evidence), and the self correcting nature of scientific advancement there would have been absolutely no chance for me.
You see, medical researchers come up with a hypothesis based on observed phenomenon. They then devise a test in which they cannot influence the end result, and then publish their findings for their peers to critique. If they did something wrong, it is caught, and more testing is done. In fact, more testing is done anyway. This is called Replication. That means if you have devised a study showing how much more effectively and quickly your pet rabbit learns to foil bungling hunters by watching cartoons, then I will also replicate that test to ensure the results are genuine. If they’re not, we’re going to have conflicting outcomes, and more and more study will happen until we get to the bottom of the true nature of how rabbits foil hunters.
Let me boil it down: science sticks to the facts in a way that negates whether those testing have an opinion about their studies, and it ensures that if they do botch it it will be caught and corrected. This is the reality of how science works. It is also the foundation to every single one of the modern conveniences you and I take for granted every day. Cars, refrigerators, televisions, telephones, cell phones, computers, antibiotics, vaccines, satellites, airplanes, indoor plumbing, skyscrapers, shoe insoles, birth control, iPods, compact discs, DVDs...
The list can go on for pages and pages. Science is leading us to more comfortable, productive, healthy lives and careers. It allows us to do things that would seem to be magic to someone from 200 years ago.
Recently, an acquaintance responded to my chiding of the belief in ghosts and those that claim to talk to the dead “Ah the faith you all place in science. It doesn’t explain everything you know.” I simply responded to such an absurd statement by pointing out that science had fixed both my and her spines. She has rods and screws in her spine also, correcting a very severe case of scoliosis. She walks upright, has a straight spine and leads a healthy happy life because of science, and yet her attack on science was that it does not know everything.
Here’s a news flash: science admits that. It continues to progress precisely because of that. You see, explaining “everything” isn’t the goal. The goal is to continue to learn all we can on observed phenomenon with empirical data gathered from blinded study published openly for peer review and based on testable hypothesis.
Quite frankly to live your life in debt to science and then throw insults at science out of misunderstanding it is such an insult I don’t know where to begin. Which leads me to the point of this paper.
Click to expand...

After I wrote this, I found out the cancer has spread to my arm. I will be talking with an oncologist on 3 January, 2006. We'll discuss treatment options then. In the meantime, it seems I have an excuse to miss TAM.

Sorry about that.

Cheers.
 
fowlsound said:
My paper.

It's not written as well as it could have been. It's not as scientific, in that it does not go point by point through alternative medicines and treatments, as it could have been. It's not very polite at times.

It's my story, and it's how I feel about those that would offer me alternative medicine in lieu of proper medical treatments for my cancer.

Read at your leisure. I hope you enjoy it. There's some great pictures of my spine in there, both before the surgery and after.

I'll quote a little here:



After I wrote this, I found out the cancer has spread to my arm. I will be talking with an oncologist on 3 January, 2006. We'll discuss treatment options then. In the meantime, it seems I have an excuse to miss TAM.

Sorry about that.

Cheers.
Click to expand...


Thanks for that Fowlsound, it said all of the things I wanted to say to the rule 8's who tried (successfully unfortunately) to push SCAM onto my sister when she had cancer. Unfortunately at that time I was too young (and emotional) to really articulate what I wanted to say, so i spent a lot of time very frustrated, except on the one occasion when I did actually resort to physical violence. My youth and emotional stat providing a pretty good shield from serious repercussions.
I'm, none too proud of what I did, but I have to admit, it felt good.
 
Yowza fowldood,
I had a suspicion those were implants you either had or currently have. I guess things could be worse. Damn.. Not sure what to say. I read your story and of course you are preaching to the choir here so to speak but right on. I will pray to FSM that you continue to win all your battles.
 
Good luck to you FS. You have a quiet steady courage about you and I am inspired by it. You'll be missed at TAM. Get better soon!

-z
 
fowlsound said:
After I wrote this, I found out the cancer has spread to my arm. I will be talking with an oncologist on 3 January, 2006. We'll discuss treatment options then. In the meantime, it seems I have an excuse to miss TAM.

Sorry about that.
Click to expand...
Sorry too, Fowlsound. I'm rooting for you.

Rolfe.
 
Dude...um...dude. No, really, Dude.

ETA: The MRIs of the spine "before" I sat :eye-poppi for a good minute. So, again, Dude!
 
Jumpin' Jeebus!!

The pics of your spine made me reach for a handfull of Advil just for the sympathy pain.

I publicly bow before you in recognition of your courage. I hope I'd show the same were I in your shoes. Please pardon me if I also fervently hope I never have the chance to find out.
 
Well said, fowlshound.

I wouldn’t worry about it not being a scientific document, or that there’s some bad language in it – it’s from the heart, and that’s what really gets the point across.

Will it be staying up on that URL? I’d like to link to it if I may.

I’m rooting for you too. Well I will be unless you slag Newcastle Utd off again. :p
 
John Jackson said:
Well said, fowlshound.

I wouldn’t worry about it not being a scientific document, or that there’s some bad language in it – it’s from the heart, and that’s what really gets the point across.

Will it be staying up on that URL? I’d like to link to it if I may.

I’m rooting for you too. Well I will be unless you slag Newcastle Utd off again. :p
Click to expand...


Terry is hosting that for me. It's up to him. If you'd like, pm me an email address and I'll send you a PDF of it. (or just save it from that URL.)

I give premission to everyone who wants to reproduce or copy that paper as they see fit.
 
Thanks fowlshound,

I'll save a copy and put it on my server then I'll take the bandwidth hit.

I'll use it "as is".

Cheers,
John
 
John Jackson said:
Thanks fowlshound,

I'll save a copy and put it on my server then I'll take the bandwidth hit.

I'll use it "as is".

Cheers,
John
Click to expand...


Sweet. Post the link to your site. I'd be interested to see it.


ETA:

Nevermind. My moronic self remembered to check your profile.

Next I will learn to tie my shoes...
 
Sounds like you've had a real "interesting" life there fowl, I hope it gets a lot less interesting in 06. Keep up the writing, maybe somebody else out there with similar problems to you will read it and get something positive from it.

My crystal balls tell me you've got lots of TAMS in front of you. :)
 
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