re: The Voice of the Patient: Time To Bring Out the Muzzle?

[Margerie]

hmmmmmm... don't like the line "metastasizing their views" or "bring out the muzzle". I don't think they would title an article about men protesting their cancer treatment options or non-options including the word "muzzle." Certainly the "bring out the muzzle" implies something even more sinister in my opinion, but maybe I am too sensitive.


I do not care for "fear-based" medicine, or being so afraid of dying of breast cancer that I will sign up for a very toxic treatment that may or may not kill my cancer before it kills me. I do know that is a tempting choice and I have signed up for some pretty horrid treatments already to treat my Stage 3 aggressive cancer. It is impossible to remove fear from the breast cancer diagnosis/treatment equation.

But there is a fine line between being an "alarmist" (which I have been called, by other survivors, because I do not eat up what is being fed to me..... and I do not like how breast cancer survivors are patronized and "shh, shh, there, there just do what we say and don't worry yourself because stress will make your cancer come back"), an informed "breast cancer consumer" and a brash fear- mongering "activist".

I just want the facts please. My oncologist will give me the facts, I try to squelch my fear and the nagging "do WHATEVER it takes" thoughts.

Why do we need hearings in the first place?? Because, oh yeah, it is not really about the facts or the best treatment, it is about money and fear. And money. **sigh**

We want better treatments now. Sorry for the ramble.....