3 ms·

my sister is dying due to glioblastoma malforme and watching her "treatment" (cyberknife/avastin/invasive surgery) for the disease provided by top tier US medic

my sister is dying due to glioblastoma malforme and watching her "treatment" (cyberknife/avastin/invasive surgery) for the disease provided by top tier US medicine (barrows mainly) leaves me with the marked impression she would be better off seeking alternative therapies. I'm as skeptical a human being as you are likely to find on this planet and I am no champion of pseudo medicine - some ailments however may be treated more effectively via the placebo effect if nothing else. GBM with its ~95% mortality rate over a 2 year period is likely one of them. So while I agree with your overall sentiment there are plenty of edge cases where "medicine" is anything but.

robbiep 14y ago
My heartfelt condolences. I had a cousin my age with GBM, and have been involved extensively with a Neurosurgeon in the surgical resection of GBM tumours. It is truly one of the worst conditions there are. The essence of what you are getting at, I think, is whether we should treat some cases at all. This is a problem I have considered many times watching my Surgeon interact with GBM patients. I think it comes down to 2 measures: Does the patient desire quantity of life, or quality of life? And what trade-offs would a patient be willing to accept in order to achieve quantity of life? Would it be okay for them to be a hemiplaegic? Paralysed? Unable to speak? Blind? For some patients this is okay as they may see their children reach some meaningful milestone, or be able to go and do that 1 thing they have always wanted to do. This is a horrible tradeoff that no medical practitioner can offer any advice on, it is a deeply personal choice. My thoughts go out to you and your family.
- moultano 14y ago
  My dad died of it, and I'm not sure the treatment was worth it. He lived for a year instead of a few months, but surgery on your brain can change who you are. It changes your personality. He was unrecognizable for much of that year.

robbiep 14y ago

My heartfelt condolences. I had a cousin my age with GBM, and have been involved extensively with a Neurosurgeon in the surgical resection of GBM tumours. It is truly one of the worst conditions there are. The essence of what you are getting at, I think, is whether we should treat some cases at all. This is a problem I have considered many times watching my Surgeon interact with GBM patients. I think it comes down to 2 measures: Does the patient desire quantity of life, or quality of life? And what trade-offs would a patient be willing to accept in order to achieve quantity of life? Would it be okay for them to be a hemiplaegic? Paralysed? Unable to speak? Blind? For some patients this is okay as they may see their children reach some meaningful milestone, or be able to go and do that 1 thing they have always wanted to do. This is a horrible tradeoff that no medical practitioner can offer any advice on, it is a deeply personal choice. My thoughts go out to you and your family.

moultano 14y ago
My dad died of it, and I'm not sure the treatment was worth it. He lived for a year instead of a few months, but surgery on your brain can change who you are. It changes your personality. He was unrecognizable for much of that year.