Reading Lisa
Lisa is not asking for a diagnosis. She has a team of doctors. She is just letting you know what it’s like to be in her circumstances, in case you’re interested, or care.
Old and New Music, on Dying to Give Birth
“The Death of Queen Jane” refers to Jane Seymour, a wife of Henry VIII. She died in October 1537, at less than 30 years of age, days after delivering a male heir.
More on Mammography, Breast Cancer, Misleading Arguments, Emotion and Women’s Health
While therapy has improved quite a bit since 1985, the greatest benefit derives from most women avoiding the need for life-long treatment by having small tumors found and removed before they’ve spread.
A Message for Doctors, on Christmas in the Hospital
Please don’t race through rounds. Be a little generous with your time, your thoughts and words. Patients may need more examination, a bit of hand-holding, besides extra diligence.
What to do about a Curved Spine? On Data, ‘BodyCast’ and New Directions
The NIH provides some information on scoliosis …Life is curved, usually, and maybe it’s better that way. Perhaps that was the Bocanegra’s point,
“The Dallas Buyers Club” Takes on AIDS, Peer Patients, and Not Taking “No” for An Answer
Published trials can be flawed. Even if they’re well-analyzed, the findings can be hard to interpret when it comes to a single patient’s course and well-being. What’s a dying man to do?
Why I Like the (Absurd) Dancing in the OR Video
What Deb did, and I thank her for this, is offer an extreme example of patient-centered care. Among other things, she did everything possible to assure that the people caring for her perceive her as a human being who loves dancing.
A Conference on Bioethics and Humanities, and Future Planning
The tone, overall, was intense. Intellectual, brain-stimulating… By contrast to other medical meetings I’ve attended, there was little glitz, scant makeup and limited Wireless. Perhaps the most surprising aspect of the ASBH conference
A Theoretical Note to My Students, On a Breast Cancer Case and Future Learning
Keep thinking, constantly – how the data applies to the person, an individual, the real patient you’re trying to help.
Birth of the Metastatic Breast Cancer Alliance
The new Metastatic Breast Cancer Alliance includes a spectrum of agencies, young and old, working together. The goal is to promote knowledge and research about breast cancer metastases – to develop more effective, less toxic treatments, and to improve the lives of people living with Stage 4 disease.
A Little Bit of Good? on Dying, Communication, and Breaking Bad
Sometimes there’s no way to mend a person or a bad situation. You can’t deny reality. But if you’re still conscious and able to communicate, you may be able to lessen the damage you’ve done, or the pain someone else is experiencing, just a bit.
A Case for Slower Medicine
Anger is an understandable reaction to a system that dehumanizes patients, that treats bodies as containers of billable ailments and broken parts. But most doctors go about their daily work with good intention – to heal.
Seeing ZocDoc, And Listening To A Panel On Improving Health Care
No word cloud is needed; we were in one. It’s hard not to be charmed by the brightness of delightful, eager tech-workers who want to make it easier for people to get to doctors they might need. In theory. The ZocDoc space bore no semblance to any hospital or office where I’ve been a doctor or a patient.
Visiting an Exhibit on Early AIDS at the New York Historical Society
Most doctors didn’t know what was going on. The young men weren’t sure either. There were rumors but also credible denials about a disease affecting the community…
Summer Reading: Island Practice, About A Rare Physician on Nantucket
This book probes the relationships formed when a doctor is immersed in his community. There are few secrets.
Good News from SCOTUS on Gene Patents, But Questions Remain
What goes unaddressed by the justices is the patentability of cDNA based on common genetic variants in cancer. Those are “naturally occurring” mutations, inasmuch as they arise in humans….And the Supremes need to know about biology.
On Friends Affected by Cancer, and Environment Oncology
If I could pick a field for future investigation that might lead to insight on cancer’s causes and, ultimately, reduce the cancer burden 30 and 50 years from now, I might choose the tiny, under-funded area of environmental oncology
Questions for ASCO – on Tamoxifen, ATLAS and aTTom
The problem with Tamoxifen is that it has anti-estrogen effects that many young (and older) women consider undesirable. Already our breasts have been cut. Feeling “feminine” is not trivial.
Should People With Health Problems Talk About their Conditions?
Do you need to explain to the person on the checkout line or, say, a mother organizing a bake sale, why your back hurts? Or why you need a seat on the bus?
Don’t Judge Her! An Essay on Angelina Jolie, BRCA, Cancer Risk and Informed Decision-Making
There’s no right answer…Jolie’s essay reflects the dilemma of any person making a medical choice based on their circumstances, values, genetic test results and what information they’ve been given or otherwise found and interpreted.