General Partner Grief Discussion

Another way to look at it . People who have or die of cancer their organs cannot be used I think for transplant. So look at the lack of organs in the future that will not be available. So I think in the future they will have to look for more research.

I get the analogy but I have to disagree. The equivalence of HIV is a little off for me, HIV affects a significant minority of the population but itā€™s transmitted between people and we understand how that happens. Itā€™s not something that can just suddenly ā€˜happenā€™ to anyone if medical advice and procedures are followed, which is not the case for cancer. Thereā€™s around 1.3 million new cases of HIV a year, compared to cancers 18 million. The HIV rate of infection globally has been falling year on year whereas for cancer the rate of new diagnosis continues to climb. All of this suggests that in a very cold business sense, that HIV is a diminishing market, whereas cancer is an ever expanding one.

I get where youā€™re coming from with the drug dealer and the opportunity to make sales, but for me, I donā€™t believe that money is the motivation in finding a cure for cancer. The person or team that can lay claim to that will go down in history, the new Pasteur or Curie. As all of us on here know itā€™s not really the money that you leave behind but the legacy of the person you were. The innumerable people they will have helped, suffering they will have stopped, lifeā€™s they will have saved. Iā€™d guess that would be what motivates people. As you say with the advent of AI things are about to take a giant leap forward, that can go one way or the other with regards to access and control, but thereā€™s a window of opportunity for people to indulge their motivation, who knows what will happen.

@Walan using hiv wasnā€™t meant to compare hiv to cancer - completely different
Cancer is a very complex disease and there are so many different types that each need a unique treatment approach - there will never be an overarching cure for all cancers

My, admittedly, oversimplified point on hiv is that if a drug company has the opportunity to introduce a once off cure, or 20 - 30 year patented drug regimen to a captive market to manage the disease, the latter is the most lucrative option

The scientists searching tirelessly for cures do not have a financial motive - but the research and development, trials and approvals to bring to market have to be funded to tune of millions. The massive drug companies funding this have nothing but a profit motive
They wonā€™t invest unless there is a future pathway to making a high return on investment

A single regimen for a cure isnā€™t as marketable as the drug companies have to recover their investment from a single application, so the cost of that single treatment would be exhorbitant and prohibitive, whereas a long term drug regimen would spread the cost and far more likely to be taken up by medical insurance companies and public health care

Case in point, there is a vaccine that was developed for prostate cancer called Provenge that uses a personā€™s white blood cells exposed in lab to their cancer to develop immune response and then reintroduced to patient, which has been shown to be very effective
This is not approved for use on NHS as itā€™s deemed too expensive
And thatā€™s a vaccine that has been developed by a given pharmaceutical giant and deemed profitable enough to bring to market, and still excluded from use by NHS

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I know I am not very clever or understand stuff easily , but my thoughts have always been , we should have a yearly MOT like a car. From an early age , not when we are older . If they could find cancer/ heart issues and all other medical issues before they became a problem . Surely that would save a lot of lives , I know the cost would be very high, but what cost do we put on someoneā€™s life, ā€¦all xtake carex

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I think everyone should have a full body CT scan a year which could catch cancer early. Especially men from a younger age as some men are terrible going to the doctorā€™s. I donā€™t think my husband ever was called up for a health check. He died suddenly and unexpectedly from undiagnosed kidney cancer at 53. The stange thing is my husband had a 3 metre fall 20 months previous and smashed his elbow to pieces and fractured 2 ribs. I do wonder if that was the start of things and surely they would of seen the cancer then by blood tests before his operation. Just so many unanswered questions.

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@MemoriesOfUs I fully agree with all you have said, but for me, again, it presupposes that the motivation would be financial. If you look at someone such as Bill Gates, whatever you think of him the Gates Foundationā€™s ambition to eradicate Malaria canā€™t really be justified as coming from seeking monetary profit, it is working to place him in history. By eradicating malaria. Whatever your thoughts about that, it goes beyond acquiring money into a very different motivation. Weā€™re in a shit system, but there are altruistic opportunities attached to that. Interesting times, unfortunately.

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My husband got a checkup at DR when he was 50 .I think it was just basic blood test and blood pressure. They did say his blood pressure was high ,but my husband thought it might be white coat syndrome. He was put on blood pressure tablets ,and he bought a blood pressure thing , to check his blood pressure every day , and it was fine , donā€™t know if because of the tablets he was taking or what . That was the first time he had gone to the DR all the time that I knew him , we met when both 16 . He died at 59. So I do get your point about men and DR. ā€¦Itā€™s terrible the thoughts that haunt us ,isnā€™t it , and we will never know the answers to these thoughts .xtake carex

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Yes you do wonder on the side effects ? My 83 year old mother doesnt trust the drs in this country !! She got a good point i would say ā€¦

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@Deb5 I donā€™t think itā€™s all the DR , we had a very good DR but he retired years ago . I know if you go to our DR now ,they will only listen to one ailment . Even if we know they are all connected. I really feel like phoning DR for an appointment but asking for four appointments all together , then maybe he will listen to what I have to say . X

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@Walan I personally think Bill Gates is over vilified and COVID conspiracy theories donā€™t make much sense

I agree there are philanthropists and many scientists out there with no financial motive working tirelessly - many are not even looking for fame or to cement their legacy, but as burden of passion

Assuming all the R&D was financed by a philanthropist, at some point the drug has to be created & manufactured and brought to trials by a pharmaceutical company and then application for licensing approval to enter the market
Drug companies only do that if theyā€™re going to make money

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@Broken2222 & @Deb5 & @Hazel.1966
I canā€™t say I have much faith in doctors in UK

When I took my partner to India - and the chaos there has to be seen to be believed - the doctors listened carefully to everything, run multiple tests and scans and most of all, had a good bedside manner.
Her oncologist there came to the hospital at 10pm at night on Saturday to see how the treatment was going (she was on 48 HR chemo infusion)

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@MemoriesOfUs , thatā€™s how a DR should be , concerned about a patient, I know DR are only human , but how many mistakes have they made in their JOBS. how many people go away from a DR appointment feeling worse than they did . Mistakes made in hospitals with names and medication . If we in our jobs made mistakes, we would be disciplined or even fired from the job . I know the DR I had before he retired was very good , he phoned the house one night to see how I was , and also phoned me to say the antibiotics he had given me wouldnā€™t work after getting the results of a swab so changed them . The DR now would probably say it was my fault they didnā€™t work , x

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Did u take her to india ā€¦ wow ā€¦ you really tried everythingā€¦ i didnt have time :frowning: or else i wouldve too xx

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@Deb5 I took her to India for a specialised treatment on her liver after NHS basically washed their hands of her

I had everything riding on it, but when we got there and they did the pet scan, her liver was already 80% consumed and the treatment was too risky :disappointed:
We saw the oncologist there and he put her on a slightly different drug regimen and did various tests
The treatment there was very holistic - after the scans, the head of nuclear medicine, who was to perform the treatment, consulted with oncologist to look at a way of reducing the tumour burden so the treatment may be viable in a few months

That would never happen in UK, even if they had offered the treatment

@Iā€™d assume if they had the funds for RD, then theyā€™d have the funds to create a company that could manufacture and market the drug. I mean in the realms of pure conjecture that weā€™re in, weā€™re talking about individuals with access to finance above the level of even some developed countries.

@Deb5 & @Walan I finally tried the meditation :+1:
Not sure if it worked - something about her voice :slightly_smiling_face:
Iā€™ll give it another go tomorrow

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I liked her voice ā€¦ thought it was relaxing :slight_smile:

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Thank you for your replyā€¦.yes it is all the ifs and whatā€™s. My husband was so stubborn and never would go to the doctor unless it was something visible like a bakerā€™s cyst. God knows how he worked up to the day he died with kidney cancer. Take care and big hugs xx

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I have lost all faith in the NHS. I went to see my then current doctor about 2 months after I lost my husband last year to get help with anxiety/depression etc and this resulted in a number of test to determine a physical problem! they first of all said I had diabetes, which I didnā€™t since as soon as I lost some weight any diagnosis disappear, next they want to make out I have a heart problem and want to talk to me about statins! I now know why my husband lost all faith in the doctors, they are too quick to judge and want a simple diagnosis. They decided that he just had a frozen shoulder in December 2022 and sent him away with pain killers, next thing I know heā€™s in hospital, January 2023, and they are talking about cancer which had never been mentioned before despite numerous tests! He was gone less than 3 weeks later. I think that I will ignore the doctors as they never helped him or me when we needed them most. This time of year is proving to be really difficult and, despite what my friend says, I have been abandoned and so feel the need to hibernate and cry until I get past the day, 11th February.

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@Guineapig65 , That must of been horrendous and such a shock for you . And then not to get the help from your DR when you most needed it , absolutely shocking beyond words. Iā€™m so sorry you have had this happen to you and your husband . You will feel really down / sad/ heartbroken more than normal . As the one year approaches remembering the awful time you and husband went through at this time last year , and yes the tears will just flow and flow , I think we all have that abandoned feeling , others who havenā€™t experienced this devastation in their lives , really donā€™t understand . The battle we go through each day , just surviving , wanting our husband back with us and yet we know that will never happen . Not in this life. I know itā€™s an over said thing m but just try and be kind to yourself , donā€™t worry about how you are feeling , whatever way you feel is right for you . Your husband is still with you in your heart and mind and always will be . Iā€™m here for you as are others on this site anytime you need a chat or vent or just to know others care and understand , please xtake carex x

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