mementomori
Posts by this author
September 28, 2006
It is a mistake to look too far ahead. Only one link in the chain of destiny can be handled at a time.
- Winston Churchill
It goes without saying that oncologists often rely on pictures of tumors to determine whether or not a cancer has responded to treatment. These images of tumors are obtained…
September 27, 2006
"Red Wine Slows Brain Cell Damage In Mice"
Why do mice always get to receive the newest advances in medical care? Don't these scientists know that myself and probably several of my fellow ScienceBloggers would gladly volunteer for perilous experiments such as this one? It's reports like these…
September 25, 2006
When it comes to reading, I am new to the field of medical biography, having specifically avoided it for over 20 years just as the mailman of old eschewed taking long walks on his day off. Mercifully, enough time has passed that I no longer toss my popcorn into the inky depths if a patient of mine…
September 23, 2006
One of the delights of growning up in the pre-cable era was when the local station showed a horror film on Saturday nights. As kids we used to love to stay up late and cower under the blankets as we watched one monster after another stalk their hapless victims. "Don't go in there!" we screamed,…
September 21, 2006
In case you've forgotten, there is a new type of anti-cancer treatment available called targeted therapy, which attacks specific molecular targets on the outside or within the malignant cell. Such agents differ from standard chemotherapy, which disables or destroys cells that happen to be rapidly…
September 18, 2006
One of the more curious lectures we ever received in medical school was by a retired family doctor whose job was to interject some real-life medicine into our mind-numbing freshman syllabus. One day he started his talk with these words: "Beware of the hateful patient." As he said this he paused…
September 15, 2006
In our last episode of "The Scintillating World of The Cheerful Oncologist" I unveiled a list of my top ten favorite black and white sci-fi films. I certainly appreciate all those readers who took a moment out of their busy day to leave a cordial comment on my taste in cinema [Editor's note: He's…
September 14, 2006
Taking vitamin D cut the risk of pancreatic cancer nearly in half, according to a new study that is being called the first to show such a benefit.
Hooray for vitamins! Mom always told us to take a vitamin before toddling off to school, which was her "Plan B" for good health. "Plan A," consisting…
September 13, 2006
Oncologists have many wishes. Their pockets are crammed with them. They lie awake in the early morning, while trees outside their window slowly shed gray shadows left behind by the fleeing night, wondering who among the many people walking the earth today will not live to see twilight return, and…
September 10, 2006
[Editor's Note: From time to time the narrator of this blog petitions the board of directors of Cheerful Oncologist Productions, Ltd. to reprint certain posts from his old sites that he finds interesting, although where he comes up with this delusion is beyond us. Anyway, in order to humor him…
September 9, 2006
Perhaps Afarensis and I are the only two bloggers left on Mother Earth who fret over the decline of the intelligent, scary and wonderfully provocative science fiction movie. Thank heavens for DVDs, is all I can say. Because we can now build our own library of great movies we don't feel so…
September 7, 2006
Since there is a nerd contest going on at ScienceBlogs I might as well reveal my score:
What does this mean? Your nerdiness is: Somewhat nerdy. I mean face it, you are nerdier than about half the test takers.
Hey, I just might be the least nerdy of all the ScienceBloggers! Wow! Kinda makes a…
September 6, 2006
Four leading cancer organizations - the Center for Disease Control, cancer registries, the National Cancer Institute and the American Cancer Society have supplied demographic data to once again assemble and produce the "Annual Report to the Nation on the Status of Cancer, 1975-2003, Featuring…
September 5, 2006
September 5, 2003
Dear [name withheld],
I just found out that you have decided to use a different oncologist for your adjuvant chemotherapy and wanted to let you know that I certainly understand why some patients hit it off with one doctor but not another. I wish you nothing but the best of health…
September 1, 2006
[Editor's note: this essay is adapted from a post written on September 7, 2005]
Oh it's a long, long while, from May to December,
But the days grow short when you reach September...
After a dozen weeks of heat, of searching for green canopies of shade, of donning wet bathing suits and dodging…
August 30, 2006
I read this article in the NRO, and the author actually made some interesting arguments. 'Basically,' he said, 'I am questioning the premise that [global warming] is a problem rather than an opportunity.' Does he have a point?...
While I am no expert in giving out answers to global warming I do…
August 29, 2006
"The true art of memory is the art of attention." -Samuel Johnson
An Open Letter to All Those Who Love to Read:
Have you ever got involved in a good book, be it a mystery, biography or even a delightful review of the geological history of Mothership Earth, set it aside for a few nights and then…
August 27, 2006
"I am not overweight, I am underheight - My weight is perfect for a man of 7'9"."
-- Victor Buono
The party's over
It's time to call it a day
They've burst your pretty balloon
And taken the moon away
It's time to wind up the masquerade
Just make your mind up the piper must be paid
Being a little…
August 25, 2006
[Editor's Note: the following anecdotes were selected from I Love the Sound of My Own Voice: Twaddle and Bromides from The Cheerful Oncologist, published by Venal Literary Infatuations Press, 2006. The author has asked me to announce that first editions will be available as soon as his secretary…
August 23, 2006
Remember Me: A Lively Tour of the New American Way of Death
by Lisa Takeuchi Cullen
If there is one topic in America that will always be voted "Least Likely to Be the Source of Light-Hearted Banter Around the Dinner Table," it is death. According to the voting, the second-place finisher in this…
August 21, 2006
Here are the latest medical headlines that without question are crucial to the survival of the human race. As a continuing service to his readers, the moderator offers up these breathtaking revelations from the realm of health, or the lack of it:
"Yoghurt chewing gum aims to tackle tooth decay"…
August 20, 2006
I recently gave an interview to Jo Cavallo, a journalist who is writing a story for a national medical magazine about the dilemma of paying for new targeted therapies against cancer. She asked that I post the following request for interview:
Interview Request
I'm writing a magazine story about…
August 17, 2006
Teen can opt out of chemotherapy.
The 16-year-old Virginia boy may undergo radiation and alternative treatments.
This story has been reported before by Orac and others, but I just wanted to add a couple of highly biased comments to the latest development in the case of a teenager who took…
August 15, 2006
For all those secretaries, nurses, medical assistants and other staff members who spend their days working in a doctor's office - this comment, made by one of my patients today, is for you. Please do not ever think that your efforts to help the sick are unappreciated. You are more valuable to the…
August 11, 2006
"In the future days which we seek to make secure, we look forward to a world founded upon four essential human
freedoms.
The first is freedom of speech and expression --everywhere in the world.
The second is freedom of every person to worship God in his own way-- everywhere in the world.
The third…
August 8, 2006
"Common food wrappers contain hidden rubber proteins that could trigger allergic reactions in up to 3.5million Britons some of them fatal, a study has shown."
I was just returning to consciousness after spending a peculiar night floating through Dreamland on a mission to eat as many chocolates,…
August 7, 2006
What movie do you think does something admirable (though not necessarily accurate) regarding science? Bonus points for answering whether the chosen movie is any good generally....
Ahem...being on holiday for the past two weeks I just now saw this AskaSciBlogger question and therefore have earned…
August 4, 2006
[Editor's note: Finally The C.O. is packing up to return to the grueling routine that all those must face who are not retired and relaxing by their lake cabin. It's about time!]
After two weeks of getting sand in the suit by day and stars in the eyes by night, my idyll by the blue water of the…
August 2, 2006
"Processed Meats Tied To Stomach Cancer"
Another study of dietary habits has been published that is nothing less than a ham-handed slap in the face to loyal consumers of bacon, sausage, hot dogs, salami and smoked meats. According to a report by Swedish scientists of 15 studies on stomach cancer…
August 1, 2006
How embarrassing it is to reveal that I am probably the last bibliophile to read Jon Krakauer's classic narrative of the disastrous May 1996 expedition to Mount Everest. I knew it was wonderfully reviewed but have resisted the temptation to vicariously ascend the deadly peak, perhaps out of fear…