How many ways are there to take advantage of those with a quickly fatal disease with no known cause and no cure?
Tonight we see the tip of the iceberg on CBS on 60 Minutes.
There is the "snake oil" segment on stem cell opportunities that are presented to those with ALS every day. Before you dismiss patients as being gullible, think about how we are taught to fight disease and not give up. When proven medical science offers no cure, people grasp.
Then there is the segment on Al Pacino. What does that have to do with ALS, you ask? Featured in the Katie Couric interview is Al Pacino telling of his new role as Jack Kevorkian, a man who killed a man with ALS, Thomas Youk, on national television. Before you give Kevorkian a pass since the patient was willing, read up on pseudobulbar affect and frontal temporal dementia in ALS... then think about what constitutes a willing patient.
Perhaps on Monday morning there will be many conversations about the various ethical issues surrounding ALS.
ALS patients are far from gullible, we are loaded with courage. For that cure we must fight conmen, politics, Capitol Hill, and religion. Families grasp, caregivers grasp, and patients grasp, especially when in the arms of death. Dr. Kevorkian was our advocate who used the courts to mandate living wills, DNR orders, pain management, and quality Hospice care.
ReplyDeleteThe question should be; Why is the United States afraid of Stem Cells?