Andrew Griffith's Blog, page 20
November 14, 2012
Will cancer breakthroughs pass economic test? | www.statesman.com
A good piece on the potential for personalized medicine with some of the new cancer treatments focussed on molecular abnormalities, and the economic challenges of drug development for smaller groups of patients: It costs something like $1 billion to develop a new drug and bring it through testing to market. That cost, plus profit, needs [...]
Effect of complementary and alternative medicine o… [Ann Oncol. 2012] – PubMed – NCBI
Results from a Korean study comparing users and non-users of complementary and alternative medicine. Not even a placebo effect shows up. Quote: Compared with nonusers in subgroup analysis, users of alternative medical treatments, prayer, vitamin supplements, mushrooms, or rice and cereal reported clinically significant worse changes in some HRQOL [Health-Related Quality of Life] subscales. Conclusion: [...]
Gruesome Cigarette Pack Images Sway Smokers, Study Finds – Health News and Views – Health.com
Not surprising. Also confirmed by the opposition by tobacco companies to such images: “Research on cigarette warnings in the United States and other countries has repeatedly shown that pictures work better than text,” said lead investigator Dr. James Thrasher, an associate professor in the department of health promotion, education and behavior at the University of [...]
Patient education is often an afterthought
Good points on the current limits of patient education. While my experience in Canada has been much better than my mother-in-law’s experience in Switzerland, it still falls far short of the potential. Quote: What if the simple fact of receiving a diagnosis- say diabetes, cancer, or multiple sclerosis- set in motion a series of automatic [...]
November 11, 2012
Technorati Registration
Need this to get my blog registered: 7NFFRZPVBNH2 Filed under: Lymphoma
November 10, 2012
Year 1, Week 13: Back in Geneva
1:13 Back in Geneva and have been here long enough that it also feels like home. Fall colours a bit more advanced, some more snow on the Salève and Mont Blanc, and the same enjoyable walks. And a break in my mother-in-law’s treatment, so a more relaxed time than the previous month. One side benefit [...]
The Heart Grows Smarter – NYTimes.com
An interesting piece by David Brooks on the importance of a warm family life to success of men as adults, but equally of the aging (maturity?) effect on men. Quote: The men of the Grant Study frequently became more emotionally attuned as they aged, more adept at recognizing and expressing emotion. Part of the explanation [...]
Doctors often miss patients’ treatment preferences – Health – CBC News
Some advice for doctors on how to engage patients and understand their treatment preferences: Adopt a mindset of scientific detachment, resisting the instinct to ask themselves, “What would I do in this situation?” because the patient may value the risks, benefits, and side-effects of the treatment options differently. Form a provisional diagnosis based on available [...]
Living With Cancer: It’s About Time – NYTimes.com
Nice piece by Susan Gubar on how one’s perception of time, and what one counts, changes with cancer and other serious illness. Rings all too true with with me; I continue to set short-term, rather than longer-term, goals, given my situation, although am starting to stretch these slightly. And she ends, as someone with a [...]
Why Do People With Advanced Cancer Undergo Chemotherapy? | Work In Progress
Good piece on how the optimism bias, and doctor communications, result in more chemo and poorer quality of life in cases of terminal cancer. Elaborates further on earlier post Cancer patients may misunderstand goal of chemo. ….if a patient is under the impression that chemotherapy might cure advanced cancer, then is offering chemotherapy to that patient [...]
