The Doctor Will E-Mail You Now

Not only ???is medicine slow when it comes to adopting technologies that aren't directly related to patient treatment???, as Jonathan Likous says, but it is also slow in adopting improved clinical methods. According to estimates by E. A. Balas and S. A. Boren, in their article Managing Clinical Knowledge for Health Care Improvement (2000), it takes an average of 17 years for research results to be adopted as standard clinical practice. For new technological innovations this number is closer to an average of 4 to 6 years..!

While I personally have not read the article, and don???t know how the authors came to this conclusion, it is oft quoted. Even if the actual numbers seem high, this problem, which many other authors write about as well, clearly speaks to the importance of second opinions from top, relevant experts, for patients with rare, complicated or serious medical conditions.

Joseph Straus, MD
www.raphaelmedical.com

In 2004, I used the internet to prove I did NOT have cancer. I was able to use my biopsy test results to look up one word after the next to determine that the deadly lymphoma that "two labs had independently confirmed" was, in fact, a benign condition. Instead of dying in the six months I was given, I instead teach others how to navigate this dysfunction we call a healthcare system instead.

Trisha Torrey
Every Patient's Advocate
http://everypatientsadvocate.com

When Vo Clark says "I know there's a lot of junk on the Internet, but sometimes you hit a gold mine" referring to what is available about Leiomyosarcoma (LMS) he is making a terrible mistake. There are multiple resources of very high quality about this diisease, including an online community with over 700 active members who know more about their disease than almost any oncologist. You can join that online community at ACOR.org or directly at http://acor.org/l-m-sarcoma.html. You can find information about LMS at http://leiomyosarcoma.info. You can see what research is being conducted at http://www.lmsdr.org and you can find various resources at the Liddy Shriver Sarcoma Foundation (http://sarcomahelp.org/) to name just a few.

Hi there. I am interested in getting in touch with Vo and Marilyn Clark. I also live in the SD area, and had a Stage IIb retroperitoneal leiomyosarcoma. I would love to touch base and let them know my story. I've been in surgical remission for a year. My email is oneadorablemom@yahoo.com

Thanks, Jenifer