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v.i. 1. To shoot at targets selected at whim. 2. To deflate media hyperbole, sometimes with more hyperbole. Pages
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Author Archives: kathy
Thank you Gary Schwitzer for addressing absolute versus relative risk, despite the media’s (and some researchers’) viewing the Tamoxifen issue as proof of patients’ stupidity.
I’m going to start with the conclusion of the New York Times column that inspired this commentary, in which a doctor at Memorial Sloane-Kettering dismisses the Tamoxifen problem as something that [...]
Posted in Uncategorized Leave a comment
I woke up this morning with a mammogram debate hangover. Enough with the new guidelines, already! But still, what do we do with the mammogram-shaped holes in our lives?
As it turns out, nature abhors a vacuum almost as much as I do, and there are already some interesting and, fingers crossed and lucky [...]
Posted in Breast Cancer, Uncategorized Leave a comment
The New York Times ran this somewhat smug discussion of the new mammography guidelines, in which the author suggests that women dismiss the guidelines because they are confused or overly emotional. Hmmmm. Hard Truth + Silly Women = Hysteria. Where have I heard that argument before? Oh yeah, all of human history — [...]
Posted in Breast Cancer, Plink Leave a comment
Earth to public health pundits: you can’t correct one extreme by swinging to the opposite extreme.
Here’s a super-important issue that this whole mammography debate is only glancing off: no one is offering anything to pre-menopausal women. Yes, I understand that the epidemiology shows little or no benefit. Yes, I understand that (1) the [...]
Posted in Breast Cancer, Health Care Reform Leave a comment
Endocrine disrupters are chemicals that mimic the hormones in our bodies (often estrogen), and just like the natural versions, they cause our cells to stop, start, or change their functions. Exposure to these chemicals is known to cause birth defects, cancer, and a host of other health problems in animals, and is suspected of doing [...]
Posted in Breast Cancer, Environment and Health 5 Comments
The next time a health news report is causing you excessive worry (or manic optimism), when they’ve dodged your goo tool, and perhaps even your size matters tool — when some editor is rubbing his hands in glee convinced that they’ve got you this time because the study involved people, and lots of them [...]
Posted in Toolkit Leave a comment
From time to time, when I’m swamped at work and flunking out of social life 101, I have a tendency to say “awww, phooey” to the Big Issues, like health care reform and environmental stewardship. I figure someone else can worry about ‘em for a while. When that happens, all it takes to reignite a [...]
Posted in Environment and Health Leave a comment
A year and a half ago, I found myself strapped to a backboard in the back of an ambulance, unable to answer a simple question. My car had been totaled by a driver who was too important for red lights, giving me what a yogi would describe as a perfect opportunity to practice “just [...]
Posted in Health Care Reform Leave a comment
Remember Henery Hawk, that little chicken hawk who was always pestering Foghorn Leghorn? That’s the image that should come to mind the next time you read of a little 12-person (or 20-rat, or 40-mouse) study claiming to have found a cure for cancer, wrinkles, or even boredom. It’s not that small studies are worthless [...]
Posted in Toolkit, Uncategorized 2 Comments
Soy : miracle food or devil’s spawn?