I came across an article by Sharon Begley of Newsweek and it definitely resounded in my mind. Her article is based on the premise that Care at a top Cancer Center may just save your life, and not knowing this fact might just KILL YOU! She also makes the case that most cancer centers covet their survival statistics as if they were state secrets, and Sharon is as confused as I to understand why this is the case. It has taken me nearly two years to get the cooperation of just 10 doctors, and it has been like pulling teeth, with the wonderful exceptions like, Dr Berenson, Dr. Hari, Dr. Barlogie, Dr. Faber, and several more.
Multiple Myeloma ???
< What a Myeloma Specialist might say about multiple myeloma cancer!!
I have made similar statements about mulitple myeloma specialists. That they can provide a life expectancy 3 times greater than the average facility, and have survival rates that are also 3 times greater for 5 years, but as much as 10 times greater for 2 years. Sharon makes a similar assertion for all cancers that are not widely seen by the typical local oncologist. This would include most rare incurable cancers, and most stage 4 cancers or those that have metastasized.
This became very personal to me when a neighbor of mine found out that his wife had stage 4 colon cancer. He was told at the local hospital by their oncologist that she had a 6% chance of surviving 5 years. I told him about my work with multiple myeloma, and that there is probably a center someplace in the United States that has better rates of survival for stage 4 colon caner. I did some research on line for him and this is what I had found:
M D. Anderson, Houston, TX - Dr. Steven A Curley - 5 year survival with surgery 50%
Memorial Sloan Kettering, NY - Dr.Leonard B Saltz, MD - 5 year survival rate 30%
Seattle Cancer Care Alliance - University of Washington Medical Center - 5 year survival of 27%
Mayo Clinic, Rochester MN. - Dr. Steven Alberts - 5 year survival of 19.2%
Northwestern University - 5 year rate of 7%
They will be going to MD Anderson, where the 5 year survival is 8 times greater than the average reported by the American Cancer Society. Sounds like exactly what I would do, but sometimes you "Don't Know, What You Don't Know!!", and it can KILL YOU.
You can read Sharon's excellent article if you just CLICK HERE! It is well worth the read!! Thank You Sharon for your excellent work, and hopefully together we can SAVE LIFE!
Best Regards to all my readers and may God Bless your families cancer journey/ Gary Petersen
For more information on multiple myeloma go to www.myelomasurvival.com
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