edamaser

Friends,

Thank you for your kind comments about my letter.  The author did respond, but seems to have missed the point (or points).  He couches the problem as one of medicine's achieving better, more accurate prognoses, which, of course, will never happen because we are all different.  His letter was pleasant in the face of my criticism.  We must remember that he is young (a resident), and so might be forgiven.

But the picture is larger than one resident.  The "false hope," or "false optimism," idea keeps appearing in assorted editorial writing from the medical world.  It worries me that it may be a cultural trend.  Stay alert and respond when you see it.

Joel, thanks for the term "false hopelessness," I love it.

OK, now I'll step down from my soapbox.

Esther

Friends,

Thank you for your kind comments about my letter.  The author did respond, but seems to have missed the point (or points).  He couches the problem as one of medicine's achieving better, more accurate prognoses, which, of course, will never happen because we are all different.  His letter was pleasant in the face of my criticism.  We must remember that he is young (a resident), and so might be forgiven.

But the picture is larger than one resident.  The "false hope," or "false optimism," idea keeps appearing in assorted editorial writing from the medical world.  It worries me that it may be a cultural trend.  Stay alert and respond when you see it.

Joel, thanks for the term "false hopelessness," I love it.

OK, now I'll step down from my soapbox.

Esther

Friends,

Thank you for your kind comments about my letter.  The author did respond, but seems to have missed the point (or points).  He couches the problem as one of medicine's achieving better, more accurate prognoses, which, of course, will never happen because we are all different.  His letter was pleasant in the face of my criticism.  We must remember that he is young (a resident), and so might be forgiven.

But the picture is larger than one resident.  The "false hope," or "false optimism," idea keeps appearing in assorted editorial writing from the medical world.  It worries me that it may be a cultural trend.  Stay alert and respond when you see it.

Joel, thanks for the term "false hopelessness," I love it.

OK, now I'll step down from my soapbox.

Esther

Thank you all so much for your kind thoughts and wishes.

The reason I was deemed a non-responder so soon after my last ipi infusion is that it was my second go-round with ipi, and I showed no shrinkage at all, only slow progression. 

I'm now trying to get my calcium and creatinine under control before I launch into another treatment.

I very much appreciate everyone's overlooking my poor state at the conference.  It felt really good to me to be among my OM family.

Esther

Thank you all so much for your kind thoughts and wishes.

The reason I was deemed a non-responder so soon after my last ipi infusion is that it was my second go-round with ipi, and I showed no shrinkage at all, only slow progression. 

I'm now trying to get my calcium and creatinine under control before I launch into another treatment.

I very much appreciate everyone's overlooking my poor state at the conference.  It felt really good to me to be among my OM family.

Esther

Thank you all so much for your kind thoughts and wishes.

The reason I was deemed a non-responder so soon after my last ipi infusion is that it was my second go-round with ipi, and I showed no shrinkage at all, only slow progression. 

I'm now trying to get my calcium and creatinine under control before I launch into another treatment.

I very much appreciate everyone's overlooking my poor state at the conference.  It felt really good to me to be among my OM family.

Esther

Hi Peter,

Though I am a pretty cynical person, I do not share your cynicism about "socialized medicine," (which the US does not have, even with Obamacare, or ever will have).  Is Medicare "socialized medicine?"  One could argue it is at least an iteration of it.  Throughout my 10 1/2 years of struggling with this ugly disease, I have had numerous cutting edge treatments, and more numerous, expensive scans.  Medicare has never refused me a single thing.

I have complete choice of docs (except those who won't accept Medicare, and they are few), besides which I only need to go to the big cancer centers (where the best researcher/docs are), and they all accept Medicare.

Since "socialized medicine" will undoubtedly benefit more people than "unsocialized medicine," I'm all for it.

Stay as well as you can,

Esther

Hi Peter,

Though I am a pretty cynical person, I do not share your cynicism about "socialized medicine," (which the US does not have, even with Obamacare, or ever will have).  Is Medicare "socialized medicine?"  One could argue it is at least an iteration of it.  Throughout my 10 1/2 years of struggling with this ugly disease, I have had numerous cutting edge treatments, and more numerous, expensive scans.  Medicare has never refused me a single thing.

I have complete choice of docs (except those who won't accept Medicare, and they are few), besides which I only need to go to the big cancer centers (where the best researcher/docs are), and they all accept Medicare.

Since "socialized medicine" will undoubtedly benefit more people than "unsocialized medicine," I'm all for it.

Stay as well as you can,

Esther

Hi Peter,

Though I am a pretty cynical person, I do not share your cynicism about "socialized medicine," (which the US does not have, even with Obamacare, or ever will have).  Is Medicare "socialized medicine?"  One could argue it is at least an iteration of it.  Throughout my 10 1/2 years of struggling with this ugly disease, I have had numerous cutting edge treatments, and more numerous, expensive scans.  Medicare has never refused me a single thing.

I have complete choice of docs (except those who won't accept Medicare, and they are few), besides which I only need to go to the big cancer centers (where the best researcher/docs are), and they all accept Medicare.

Since "socialized medicine" will undoubtedly benefit more people than "unsocialized medicine," I'm all for it.

Stay as well as you can,

Esther

Yes Nan, it is the Christine who used to post on Ocu-Mel, and who used to help so many others.

Thanks for your kind words.

Esther

Yes Nan, it is the Christine who used to post on Ocu-Mel, and who used to help so many others.

Thanks for your kind words.

Esther

Yes Nan, it is the Christine who used to post on Ocu-Mel, and who used to help so many others.

Thanks for your kind words.

Esther