I'm Healthy! (Says The Health Insurance)

My friendly health insurance has written me to inform me that I am – contrary to the assertion of my doctor, and without them having ever seen or contacted me – not afflicted by any disease or illness. Cured by health insurance, it seems! What a marvellous wonder! If a health insurance (unlike doctors) can make people healthy, we should do away with all doctors all together, and simply rely on health insurances to make people health with their some written words.

Same as Pluto, which doesn't care if call it a planet or a dwarf planet, my state of health is unfortunately wholeheartedly unimpressed and unmoved by the assertion from my health insurance.

I for one am intensely grateful for this humble lesson of sophistic philosophy inflicted instilled on me by my health insurance – truly if they cure people so easily, they must sleep like babies at night. As an atheist, I say "god bless them!" to that.

KDM and the WPI made an "important discovery" about ME/CFS?

KDM made an "important discovery" about ME/CFS? Together with his buddy Vincent from the WPI?

This time, it is not contamination with mouse retroviruses. This time it is supposed autoimmunity caused by human endogenous retroviruses (HERV).

Yeah, right.

And the jokers at QuacksSinking PhoenixRising treat KDM as if he is the equivalent of Ignaz Semmelweis and Robert Koch combined. KDM is a quack, and nothing but a quack, made by God himself on the eight day to take good money from unsuspecting ME/CFS patients, and trading it for pieces of papers printed with supposed but worthless test-results.

Mark my word: The next thing they'll do is try to sell expensive and useless "HERV" tests to patients – to "help" them, you know. And after a year or two, no other lab will be able to replicate their results, and the WPI will cry "foul play" and "conspiracy against ME/CFS patients", and they will be loved by the ME/CFS fringe.

I must admit: After Mikovits was kicked out from by the WPI, I had some naive hope that  the WPI and Vincent Lombardi might turn a corner to the better – oh boy was I wrong.

Working with KDM? The WPI might as well try to channel the ghost of Karol Józef Wojtyła – this would be equally useless for ME/CFS patients, but would offer a higher entertainment value. So I think you can judge someone by the company he keeps.

They say that one rotten apple spoils a barrel full of good ones – I wonder, was there ever a good one at the WPI?

Mind you, the KDM connenction – via Redlabs or what's it called – goes back to the beginnings of the WPI, as far as I know.

I'm naive, I know.

I wonder why Mikovits didn't fit in? I mean, she was the perfect fit for this den of quacks. Perfect.

Abbie's Cop-Out

Can someone be a critical, anti-authoritarian and helpful* source for valuable and scientifically sound information in one area, and an utter complete daft idiot and uncritical anti-humanistic authoritarian anti-scientific hack in another area?

Well, it sure looks like.

* As long as Abbie Smith ("ERV") is not trying to start bitch-fights with Judy Mikovits, that is.

Wessely's Prize

So Simon Wessely got a prize for his impeccable scientific incorruptibility, high-principality and courage (or something) while bravely facing CFS patients (which were wielding WMDs, I take it).

And it seems he was involved in creating the prize in the first place – truly a hero of our time!

I would put him in line with laureates of other prestigious prizes like Kissinger (Peace Nobel), Al Gore (Peace Nobel), the European Union (Peace Nobel), or any* of the Medical Nobel Prize Laureates of the last decades. Just like Alfred Nobel wished, these distinguished people all did something which had undeniably the "greatest benefit on mankind", just like Simon Wessely.

And just like the countless molecular-biology-breakthroughs have yielded an improved life for us all (as we all can recite what these people did for us), so did Wessely's, the psycho* with an brain the size of a plant, show us the way how to imagine ourselves healthy in the face of our misguided bodily disease – it is The (Simon Wessely) Secret! Wishing Makes It So!

And if you doubt that (and try to look for a bodily reason to your malaise) you will not get better, that Simon will make sure!

He should enjoy his prize, a prize that shows to everybody that Simon Wessely is surrounded by uncritical lickspittles likeminded scientists, who have captured the wellbeing of a large part of our population.

So congrats, my dear Simon!

/sarc
* Maybe with the exception of the inventors of the CT scanner, the MRI scanner, the people receiving a prize for their work on prostaglandins, and the discoverers of  HIV – with the discoverers of HIV being a sad story. Furthermore, some of the molecular-biological work seems very important, but has not had any noticeable positive effect on health care so far.

Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) fails for Depression

Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) fails for depression.

Who would have thought?

CFS, the cash cow that keeps on giving!

Not enough that we have Simon Wessely making a living out of treating CFS patients the right way (wink, wink), not enough that we have the CDC having their hand on CFS research money, not enough that we have the NCI having their hand on CFS research money, not enough that we have a lot of good friends like Harvey Alter, Judy Mikovits, Michael Maes and Kenny De Meirleir, no, we have a good old friend with Hemispherx having their hands on CFS research money!

http://www.thestreet.com/story/11730475/1/hemispherx-atm-withdrawals-raise-a-red-flag.html
…
Hemispherx used a Friday night SEC filing to disclose the sale of 10.9 million shares of stock at an average price of 92 cents per share. After expenses and commissions, Hemispherx net $9.5 million from the sale.

You said this stock sale was stealthy. Why?
…
An FDA advisory panel is scheduled to review the chronic fatigue syndrome drug Ampligen on Dec. 20. Presumably, a positive panel vote will push Hemispherx shares much higher than where they trade today. Yet, Hemispherx is rushing to raise money now. That's not a good sign.

Maybe Hemispherx wants to raise a small amount of money now and then plans to raise more money later, hopefully at a higher share price if the Ampligen panel votes to recommend approval.
…
Ha! That's funny. The FDA rejected Ampligen as a chronic fatigue syndrome therapy in late 2009. Yet for the past three years, Hemispherx has done nothing to advance Ampligen, including refusing to run a new clinical trial that FDA asked for. Hemispherx has plenty of cash to develop Ampligen. The problem is that management is hoarding cash to pay its outrageously high salaries, not to spend on Ampligen.

How much does Hemispherx CEO Bill Carter earn?

Carter was paid $1 million in salary in 2011. With bonuses, stock options and other perks, his total compensation for the year was $1.5 million. Carter's salary alone has doubled since 2009 -- the year that Ampligen was rejected.
…

I can hardly believe that!

It must be a lie!

Surely the invisible hand of the free markets will intervene! Let us all pray to the invisible hand of the free markets! Capitalism, in whom I trust, praised be your name, blessed be your trickle-down-economy!

Publish shoddy study in PNAS, dupe patients, get access to NIH-funds!

CFS Advisory Committee, October 3-4, 2012:
… Dr. Susan Maier (NIH) reported that several new members were added to the Trans-NIH ME/CFS Working Group, including Dr. Harvey Alter. It’s very good news that Dr. Alter is staying involved in CFS despite the end of XMRV. …
(via CO-CURE maillist)

Oh isn't it simply great news that our beloved Harvey Alter, after pushing the shoddy Lo/Alter/XMRV study into PNAS, gets money from the NIH to continue his fabulous work? Dandy, indeed. Simply splendid. A great scientific addition, indeed.

In that spirit, I nominate Marc Hauser, Scott Reuben and Diederik Stapel as new members for the Trans-NIH ME/CFS Working Group – with such outstanding scientists we will know for sure how the NIH-money will be accounted for!

A Modest Proposal for CFS Patients

I throw this out, in the spirit of "A Modest Proposal" – which seems to be in line with what the British press likes to publish about CFS patients.

While I am not saying that this is the case, we still have to at least think about whether it might be the case all __________________* are ___________________**, and therefore the only way to deal with these people might be to force them to do some work, so they know how to behave.

*Choose one of the following options:

• Blacks
• Jews
• Muslims
• Immigrants
• Gays
• Communists
• Climate Change Deniers
• CFS Patients

** And choose one of these options:

• Retarded
• Sub-human
• Malicious
• Dumb
• Mentally ill
• Degenerate worthless scum
• Evil monsters
• Freeloading parasites

New study confirms researcher's biases

New Robust Ways To Confirm Biases
Journal of Applied Redefinition of Reality

Simon Mustelids 1
Mikhailovich Mannovjev 2
Stephanos Lewandopolis 3

1 King's College London, Institute of Confirmation Bias, Department of Confirmation Bias Medicine
2 Pennsylvania State University, Departments of Confirmation Bias and Failed Anger Management
3 University of Western Australia, School of Confirmation Bias, Conspiracy Theories Laboratories

Abstract:
In this study we set out to confirm our biases. For this, we selected some test subjects (n = some low double digit number) that could confirm our biases, and selected some control subjects (n = some low double digit number) intended to strengthen our confirmation biases. To ensure proper confirmation of our bias we designed a questionnaire allowing us to confirm our biases. Both questions and answers were designed from our point of bias, in accordance to the standard in our field, so that we hear what we want to hear. We furthermore fooled ourself into confirming our biases by using our poor understanding of statistics and choose a multivariant statistical analysis method ("meat grinder") that yielded the expected results we desired in the form of spurious correlations.

Discussion of results:
Our study confirmed our biases (p < some low number), something we already knew before we began our study. From the standpoint of our biases, other explanations for the results seem unlikely. This result is strengthened by other groups having the same biases confirmed. With the question of our biases settled, there are some minor questions (e.g. the so called "reality paradox") that remain in our field. We are confident that these latest results in confirming our biases offer a way forward to solving these remaining questions in accordance to our biases.

Disclosure of Responsible Behavior:
The financial interests of the involved researchers were not endangered by either the conduct of research, or the publication of the results. The involved research subjects were properly blinded to the conflicting interests of the researchers, and were prevented from realizing what would be in their own interests.

Corrupted TLAs and The State of Health-Science

When it emerged in the late 1990s that the agency [CDC] had been diverting funds designated for CFS to other programs and then lying to Congress about it, Dr. Reeves—who was in charge of the program while the financial irregularities were taking place–sought and received whistle-blower protection.
…

Two years after the CDC issued its 1994 case definition, Osler’s Web was published to strong reviews. The book documented how the CDC routinely diverted money slated for CFS research to other projects because of lack of concern about the illness. (The CDC did not officially comment on the book at the time, according to a CDC spokeswoman.) Two years later, Dr. Reeves leveled similar charges against his superiors, noting that the CDC lied to Congress about how it spent CFS funding; he received whistleblower protection.

In his statement, he reported that, for example, in 1996 the agency spent $1.2 million for laboratory equipment and supplies for measles and polio and charged it to the CFS account. In 1995, he reported, the agency charged the CFS program $2.6 million for funding spent on unrelated studies. He had, he stated “attempted to rectify this within CDC” before going public.

“I believe that CDC has intentionally misrepresented monies allocated to CFS research and I cannot ethically support this,” wrote Dr. Reeves in his public statement. “The misrepresentations involve systematically charging between $400,000 and $2 million incurred by unrelated activities to CFS between 1995-97 and reporting to DHHS [Department of Health and Human Services], Congress and patients that the monies were used for CFS research.”

A 1999 report from the inspector general of HHS found that of the $22.7 million the CDC charged to its CFS program between 1995 and 1998, less than half was clearly spent on the illness. The report noted: “CDC spent significant portions of CFS funds on the costs of other programs and activities unrelated to CFS and failed to adequately document the relevance of other costs charged to the CFS program…As a result of these inappropriate charges, CDC officials provided inaccurate information to Congress regarding the use of CFS funds.”

The inspector general’s report found that $8.8 million was spent on non-CFS projects and that the documentation on an additional $4.1 million was so poor that it was impossible to determine whether they were used to support CFS research or not. Even as the CDC shortchanged the CFS program, the report noted, it disregarded Congressional requests to support important research initiatives. As an example, the report noted that Congress had urged the CDC to expand its surveillance of CFS among adolescents and to hire a neuroendocrinologist “to enable expansion of its research efforts and pursue promising findings from other Federal agencies and the private sector.”

At the time of the inspector general’s report, however, the CDC had halted an ongoing adolescent study and had not hired an endocrinologist—even as allocated money wasn’t being spent. The report noted: “Internal correspondence… indicated that delays were forced due to a ‘lack of available funds.’ Yet, we found that large portions of budgeted CFS funds had been held in reserve by the Division Director during the year, and were not released until after the deadline for obligations had passed. Thus, while important enhancements were not being implemented, more than $850,000 of FY 1998 budgeted funds were never made available to the program.”

In the wake of the scandal, Dr. Reeves’ boss left his position; the agency agreed to reform its accounting practices and restore more than $12 million to the CFS program over the next several years. Although Dr. Reeves’ whistleblower status effectively solidified his position at the CDC, his statement didn’t answer all outstanding questions. Given the revelations from Osler’s Web in 1996, it seemed unlikely to many patients and advocates that key officials at the agency could have been unaware of accounting irregularities–especially since they apparently continued through 1998, according to the federal investigators.
…

Kim McCleary, the head of the CFIDS Association of America, testified that the CFS program, based on a review of the CDC financial documents that the committee had sought, suffered from “shameful scientific leadership, zero accountability, invisible outcomes and millions and millions of dollars stuck in suspended animation, if not wasted…Only the government contractors seem to be benefiting from millions spent for which there are no worthwhile outcomes for American taxpayers, or CFS patients.”

The largest chunk of the program’s funding, reported McCleary, went to a single private research organization, Abt Associates in Cambridge, Massachusetts, in sole-source or no-bid contracts for the epidemiologic research that was being widely criticized by other scientists. At least $2.7 million committed to Abt was “in limbo”–obligated to specific projects but remaining unspent—and work on other projects was proceeding slowly and at great cost, she testified. The financial mismanagement, testified McCleary, “has resulted in program management coming often to this committee and telling other investigators that no funds are available for new projects or collaborations.”

The CDC? Corrupted. Psychopathologizing illnesses they don't want to understand.
The NCI? Corrupted. Faking XMRV research, while siphoning off billions for cancer research that goes nowhere.
The NIH? Corrupted. An dog-don't-eat-dog umbrella organization.
The WPI? Corrupted. Pushing their "Neuro-Immune" woo.
The USDA? Corrupted. Their nutritional advise is positively malicious.
The AHA? Corrupted. In league with the USDA.
The APA? Corrupted. Psychopathologizing society.
And then there is an army of freelance quacks.

Have I forgot anybody? I'm sorry if I hurt somebodies feelings by leaving them out – my bad.

The best health advise is to stop smoking, start eating something resembling Paleo, vaccinate, go only to doctors for problems you know they can help with (emergencies, surgical, dental, and so on) and otherwise stay as far away from these quacks as possible – and hope you will never get an chronic disease that forces you to use the services of these hacks.

PS: In case you think I sound like I'm filled with bitterness – that's because I am.

One should be careful what one wishes for

Some people (supposedly close to Dr. Mikovits) want the WPI investigated, as Maarten Maartensz reports.

Hmm.

A proper investigation of the events surrounding the WPI (unlike the suggested investigation) might be a good idea, and I would welcome a proper investigation, one that would include looking into the scientific work of Drs. Mikovits and Ruscetti. Looking into the scientific work of these fine doctors is something that can not be avoided, when investigating the WPI – and then, I am terribly afraid, such an investigation might come to conclusions that the people calling for such an investigation might not like. And that, I would enjoy.

Robert Gallo is an honest scientist

Robert Gallo was honest about HIV if and only if (iff) Luc Montagnier was not.

(Kudos to Maarten Maartens giving me the idea for the "if and only if (iff)" phrase)

Dr. Sarah Myhill, I presume

This piece article was posted on ProHealth.com, supposedly by Dr. Sarah Myhill. I can only presume it is meant as a parody of a quack, as it does not supply any evidence for its numerous claims – the only shred of evidence revolves around "Mitochondrial Dysfunction", which is only mentioned in passing at the beginning and is furthermore not central to any of the theories presented. As it seems to be a parody, I will take the liberty to answer with a few sarcastic remarks.

Dr. Myhill’s notes on fatigue, the immune system’s energy demands, and Rituximab
ProHealth.com
by Dr. Sarah Myhill, MD*
February 17, 2012

Dr. Sarah Myhill is a UK-based physician with a special interest in nutrition and fatigue. Her pioneering research (“Chronic Fatigue Syndrome and Mitochondrial Dysfunction”) suggests the cells’ energy generating mitochondria are dysfunctional in chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS) and other 'neuro-immune' illnesses. This article is excerpted with kind permission from Dr. Myhill’s educational website (DrMyhill.co.uk).*

_________________________

Energy Expenditure in ME/CFS: Immune Wastage of Energy and Rituximab

…

In ME/CFS either that pot of energy can be small (because of poor mitochondrial function, poor fuel supply, poor adrenal function, poor thyroid function and so on), or we can be spending energy wastefully.

How about we throw in some more human organs (the "and so on") without supplying evidence? OK, here we go: In ME/CFS either that pot of energy can be small (because of poor mitochondrial function, poor fuel supply, poor adrenal function, poor thyroid function, poor liver function, poor muscle function, poor brain function, poor skin function, poor bladder function, poor bone function and so on).

…
However, I suspect a greatly overlooked cause of wasting of energy is immunological.

If Dr. Myhill has any evidence for this, why does she keep it for herself?

Energy must be expended on daily "house keeping" duties. I was intrigued to see the following energy expenditure breakdown in Wikipedia:

- Liver 27%,
- Brain 19%,
- Heart 7%,
- Kidneys 10%,
- Skeletal muscle 18%,
- Other organs 19%.
It astonished me that the liver consumes more energy than the heart and brain combined! Much of this has to do with assimilating and detoxing food from the gut!

 Or simply it's the role the liver has in carbohydrate metabolism (among other).

Immunological Energy

I see the immune system to be like the brain, i.e. it is enormously demanding of energy. We all know this - if a healthy person develops influenza, then he becomes bed-bound for two weeks (she becomes bed-bound for a week….!).

Work done by Caroline Pond has demonstrated that when wild animals put on weight, the first place they dump their fat resources is around lymph nodes; i.e., the immune system.

Oh, that's were the extra Kilogramms went! Doh! To my lymph-nodes! Especially the lymp-node at my stomach! How stupid of me. Must be all the toxins from my gut.

Bone marrow, of course, is very fatty, so this suggests the immune system is not just demanding of energy, but energy in an intensive form; i.e., fats and oils.

The immune system spends energy fighting infection, which is, of course, highly desirable. However, if it gets its wires crossed, it may end up fighting the body itself (autoimmunity), or fighting substances which do not cause harm, and this is allergy.

Here we have the best explanaition of autoimmunity of, like, ever: Crossed wires! And we all know what happens when wires are crossed: The battery goes flat in no time. So the next time your car won't start, you know it is an allergy.

However, in ME I suspect there is another immunological waste of energy which has to do with microbes, possibly “allergy” to microbes.

So the "immunologic waste of energy" Dr. Myhill postulated without evidence was just a decoy? WTF?! "Allergy" to microbes?

Post-Infectious ME

Here, Dr. Myhill crosses her wires. Or her terms. I don't know.

A great many cases of ME follow viral infection and/or vaccination. In these conditions the immune system is switched on to fight the offending microbe.

And there is great evidence that Dr. Myhill is stupid and/or uses weasel words. And if there is an "offending microbe", why doesn't Dr. Myhill test for it and treat it?

In the short term this is highly desirable. To be effective, all vaccinations contain immune adjuvants which are there specifically to fire up the immune system. When this works in our favor, we call it immunity.

And when vaccines work, Dr. Myhill will fight this because she is anti-vax.

However, when it works against us, we call it allergy. Clinically, we know that vaccinations can trigger allergies.

Yet, Dr. Myhill fails to mention the most serious disease that is caused by vaccines: Antivaccinitis Stupidis, or stupid anti-vaxxer syndrome. And for anti-vaxxers "we know" seems to be some evidence surrogate.

And what's with her allergy fetish? Can Dr. Myhill ever stop thinking of allergies? And is that a sign that Dr. Myhill has an allergy to the scientific method? Inquiring minds want to know!

There is no doubt that there are some ME patients who do not recover until they start taking antivirals (see work by Dr. Martin Lerner in my page "Valacyclovir in the treatment of post viral fatigue syndrome,” Sep 2010), antibiotics or antifungals.

Would antiquacks help too? As I would guess there is more evidence of quack involvement, and I have not seen evidence from Dr. Myhill that viruses, microbes or fungi(!) are involved.

 In these cases, there is often no overt evidence of infection.

What, wait. No evidence! No shit, sherlock! No evidence. I am puzzled. So Dr. Myhill bases her case on her rampant imagination?

I suspect what is going on here is that these microbes are present in low levels which would not normally cause harm to the body, but the immune system continues to fight.

And I suspect Dr. Myhill throws around all kinds of fancy terms and evidences-less theories to impress people. No, that can't be!

It is a sort of inappropriate immune activation against microbes or “allergy” to microbes. This is hugely wasteful of energy. Such patients will have a large immunological hole draining their daily energy bucket.

"Allergy". To Microbes. An "allergy" to microbes. And "allergy", with quotation marks. I can hear Robert Koch spinning at the RKI.

Immune Mapping

Immune Mapping?

What we perceive going on in the body is not what is really going on in the body, but it is what the brain tells us is going on in the body!

And the same goes for Dr. Myhills "explanations" about ME/CFS – she does not tell us what is really going on in this illness. I'd say she hasn't got a clue but spinning lots of evidence-less theories – but who am I to tell?

The brain has a complete map of the body, which includes sensory and motor functions. Ref “Phantom Limb Syndrome” by Dr. VS Ramachandran (University of California, San Diego).

It is possible that this could explain the mechanism by which healing and touch therapies such as Bowen therapy, Reiki, Kinesiology, etc. work. These techniques are literally re-mapping the brain to perceive things quickly, or direct motor actions correctly.

It is possible that the immune system has a similar mapping process.

And it is possible that Nazis are living on the far side of the moon – don't ask me for my non-existent evidence, and I won't ask Dr. Myhill for her non-existent evidence, OKAY?

I think of the immune system as having a “map” of what should and should not be present in the body. I imagine it “sniffing” about the place looking for foreigners.

And I think of Dr. Myhill as someone talking out of her arse. The immune system having a "map". Yeah, Dr. Galileo Galilei Myhill, misjudged and unrecognized medical genius, creator of medical theories without a shred of evidence.

There are many good doctors who have experimented with many different types of immunotherapy, such as neutralization, enzyme potentiated desensitization (EPD) and, of course, homeopathy; and it may well be that they are having their beneficial effects because of this re-mapping of the immune system.

"Good" doctor and "experimented with homeopathy" in the same sentence. My irony meter, broketh it hath.

All these mechanisms are characterized by extremely low levels of molecules or antigens being applied with profound effects that cannot be explained by conventional pharmacology.

And that cannot be explained by any evidence from Dr. Myhill.

You, Milady Myhill, are full of shite.

Treatment of Badly Educated B Lymphocytes

"Badly educated" B-cells? What in the name of Darwin?

Immune mapping probably takes place in B lymphocytes. They start life in the bone marrow, move into the blood stream, and are educated by the thymus gland and lymph nodes. This takes a few months. The mature B lymphocytes become the decision makers for immune attack or immune tolerance (war or peace!).

More like "Idiocy or Madness!"

Post infectious ME patients may have B lymphocytes constantly at war. These white cells have been badly educated, their wires are crossed.

Plus, ME patients may have doctors that are constantly talking out of their arse. These doctors have been badly educated, their wires are crossed – it happens.

This therefore gives us a model for treatment.

A model for treatment that solely exist in the head of the good Dr. Myhill.

Either we can re-educate these B lymphocytes or we can kill them, or we can try to reduce the things they are inappropriately reacting against, which may be foods (diet) or microbes (with antimicrobials which could be drug or herbal, change the gut flora with probiotics).

Cultural Revolution and Re-Education for B-cell lymphocytes!

Re-educate B Lymphocytes with Immunotherapy

Perhaps desensitization with neutralization, EPD or homeopathy are techniques directed at re-educating these B lymphocytes to respond appropriately by remapping the immune system?

Or perhaps the good quack doctor will respond to some re-education? Nah.

In the case of neutralization the result may be immediate. With EPD (and I know much more about this because I have been using EPD for 25 years!) the result is often delayed by a few months, it lasts weeks to months, and then patients may need a top up of the treatment.

And I know much more about Dr. Myhill because I have been spending 15 minutes with this dreck.

Although these desensitizations are largely directed at foods, inhalants and chemicals, some microbial antigens are also included. See “Enzyme Potentiated Desensitisation (EPD) - how it works".

See also "Evidence – how not to provide any".

Kill B Lymphocytes with Rituximab

This drug is a monoclonal antibody specifically effective against the CD20 receptor on B lymphocytes. It specifically depletes B lymphocytes; i.e., it kills off the standing army – if this army is involved in civil war, then its depletion is a very desirable action!

And Maoism is Constant Struggle!

Rituximab is primarily used in cancer chemotherapy. By pure chance a patient who had severe ME received this drug as part of a treatment for her lymphoma and her ME symptoms disappeared. She was delighted! Her daily energy bucket was no longer being immunologically drained!

This prompted a study by her Norwegian oncologists, Prof Olag Mella and Dr. Oystein Fluge at Haukeland University Hospital, Bergen, to conduct a placebo controlled double blind trial into the effectiveness of Rituximab in ME.

This was done with 15 patients receiving the active preparation and 15 the placebo… [See “Benefit from B-Lymphocyte Depletion Using the Anti-CD20 Antibody Rituximab in Chronic Fatigue Syndrome: A Double-Blind and Placebo-Controlled Study.”] Rituximab had a highly significant beneficial effect.

What was so interesting about this effect is that it took 2 to 4 months to start, it lasted for 2 to 6 months, then some patients relapsed but some were cured!

This fits very nicely with the time scales I see in my EPD patients – again there is a delayed start, improvement, then top ups required according to the clinical response.

And this fits very nicely with my theory that Dr. Myhill simply has no idea what she is talking about and is just throwing around fancy terms.

Another way to tackle this problem of inappropriate activation against microbes would be to use therapeutic agents which may be herbal, or prescription medication, to try to reduce the level of microbes so much that the immune system stops reacting.

Herbs to the rescue! How fitting, that she does not know what she exactly fights, but she fights it with herbs about which she does not know whether they work, at all, let me repeat does not know whether they work AT ALL, against anything.

It may be that this approach explains the success of Dr. Martin Lerner’s work with antivirals, treatments with antibiotics for Lyme disease, and with antifungals for chronic yeast problems.

Or it may be that Dr. Myhill talks out of her arse. I'm still not sure.

It is the old story - we have a lot more good questions than good answers, but at least we are asking the right questions!

Yes, it is the old story! You, Milady Myhill, are not asking any good questions, you are simply and carelessly providing bad answers in the form of unsubstantiated theories.

I, for one, am thankful for this satire posted by ProHealth.com and the opportunity to return this gift with a few sarcastical words of mine.

"Sick in Reno" – In Theaters Now

The script for the latest block-buster is here:

On or about February 5, 2011, Albert Seeno, III, instructed an employee of WNG, Brad Mamer (“Mamer”), to call Mr. Whittemore and tell him that, if the Seenos didn’t get their money from an entity called BrightSource Energy, that he (Albert Seeno III) was going to personally fly to Reno and “break Harvey’s fucking legs.” (via)

See this action-packed movie by John Woo, staring Robert de Niro as Harvey Whittemore, Danny Aiello as Albert Seeno, Christopher Lloyd as Doc Mikovits, Julia Roberts as Annette Whittemore, Gary Busey as Daniel "Dan" Peterson, Tom Sizemore as Vincent Lombardi, Ian Holm as John Coffin, John Tormey as Francis Ruscetti, Harvey Keitel as Francis Collins, Andie MacDowell as Abbie "ERV" Smith, John Malkovich as William Reeves, Peter Jurasik as Simon Wessely and Michael Rapaport as the ghost of Stephen Strauss! Money, mafia and an mysterious illness in this all-star thriller!

This theatre is playing now anywhere near you!

Bad Joke

What are hundreds of thousands of people, who are sent home by their doctors with the words: 'You just imagine that'?

Isolated cases.