Wendy Harpham on Healthy Survivorship

Compassion in Modern Medicine

A common complaint about modern medicine is the depersonalization of the patient and the loss of compassion." So let's take a look at compassion.

The Big Picture

I chose internal medicine as a career because I love having "the big picture."

One of my great concerns about the changes in modern medicine is this: It is becoming increasingly common for none of the clinicians on a patient's healthcare team to have that big picture so vital to expert and compassionate care.

Bringing Back the Physical Exam

I shudder when I hear stories of physicians who order a CT scan to evaluate a patient's pain without examining the painful area. So I was happy to read that Dr. Abraham Verghese is on a mission to save the art of the physical exam.

Preparing for Tough Times

In my last post, I talked about how exercise can be a sort of training ground for dealing with the challenges of medical treatment. Today I am sharing two tips from elite athletes (as described in Pushing Past the Pain) that can be useful to Healthy Survivors:

Pushing Past the Pain

"Can you train yourself to run, cycle, swim or do another sport at the edge of your body’s limits, or is that something that a few are born with, part of what makes them elites?" So asks New York Times journalist Gina Kolata. 

This topic touches on something of interest to me as a Healthy Survivor, namely, Pushing Past the Pain, as Champions Do.

Too Old to Die Young

This post is set to go live right after midnight. Why? So I can begin celebrating on time, even while I'm sleeping.

Good Reason to Keep Smoking

Why would I ever agree with someone's decision to keep smoking cigarettes?

Miners' Lessons from the Eye of the Storm

How the trapped Chilean miners coped with life more than 2,000 feet below the earth's surface offers rich lessons on Healthy Survivorship. When you or a loved one enters the "storm" of illness or injury:

Miners' Lessons on Healthy Survivorship

The rescue of 33 minors in Chile dramatizes some lessons about positive transitions as a Healthy Survivor, such as after a risky surgery or after completing therapy for a life-threatening condition.

CCC CPR

Some things on your To-do list should not be put off until tomorrow. This is one:

Abigail's Alliance

On my recent post about clinical trials, commenter Steve Walker wrote, "The Phase III trial is being run primarily to satisfy the rigid, formulaic and in many cases scientifically obsolete requirements imposed by the FDA's Office of Oncology Drug Products for most cancer drugs...." 

Is the randomized clinical/controlled trial (RCT) obsolete?

Testing a Fast Track to Rx

Recently, I've pointed out the clashes between business and ethical considerations and beween clinicians' obligations to their individual patients and to the method that leads to advances. What if researchers can find ways to satisfy both the science and today's patients?

The Problem with Accelerated FDA Approval

In Phase I trials researchers test an experimental treatment in a few patients for the first time. The purpose is NOT to see if the treatment kills cancer cells, but only to:

• evaluate the drug's safety
• determine a safe dosage range
• identify side effects

What if the patients in a Phase I trial experience shrinkage of their tumors? Should this speed up FDA approval of the trial drug?