Friends, non-Friends, Enemies, and Accidential Enemies, Part Deux

The Medical Profession goes by a neat slogan:  "First, do no harm".  It encapsulates a way of doing business that helps put the patient at ease.  "At least they won't do more harm than good".  I'm reminded of the Calvin & Hobbes strip where Calvin is at the doctor's office.  The doctor says "This won't hurt a bit" while brandishing a hypodermic needle.  Calvin, ever the rake, answered "Well, let me jab that thing in YOUR butt, and we'll see".  

Doing no harm doesn't mean handing out zero pain, or discomfort, or having the Cure be worse than the Disease.  They've come up with a new word--"pressure"--to describe pain.  "You'll feel some pressure", when translated from the original deSade means "this is gonna hurt but we'll minimize it by calling it something much more innocuous."

As we learn what we don't got in pursuit of what we do got, we are often subjected to "pressure" and various other sensations that are not pleasant.  But they have to do it, because they are highly educated people who have to make educated guesses about what's wrong with you and what should be done to alleviate it.  And it's called the "practice" of medicine, and we all know how difficult it is to be fired up about "practice".  Just ask Allen Iverson:

Doctors are "practicing" on us.  And we have to be OK with that because there is no alternative.  The human body is an amazing instrument, full of complicated processes and body parts that do incredible things.  Each one of us is a walking set of contradictions and responses to given stimuli.  All those tests are designed to find out which rules you are breaking by your very existence, and what therapies might not be right for you.  

We assign almost deity-like respect for doctors, even the ones who aren't all that great.  The joke goes "What do you call the person who finished last in his/her class at med school?  Doctor."  We give them our lives and sometimes don't even question what they want to do to ameliorate our discomforts.  

It's the second most telling example of trust by humans.  The first?  Valet parking.  We give them our car, they give us a piece of paper.  And they drive away to God knows where (chop shop, offshore dealers, etc.).  The only reason healthcare isn't first is because our medical professionals are able to mitigate disease, injury, and our particular proclivities much better than pure chance.  

But all of the therapies, the drugs, and the expertise are light years away from the most significant factor in the equation.  The factor that dwarves any other (probably ALL others but I digress).  The three most important letters in determining your likelihood of being cured or treated.  The main reason why a given drug/therapy works on some people, and not others.  The three letters that differentiate us and make medicine such a challenge.  They are:

D.

N.

A.

DNA is why Jim Fixx, who invented the running craze in the 1970's is dead, and Keith Richards of the Rolling Stones is still alive.  Richards has pumped enough pharmaceuticals into his body to float the Titanic;  Jim Fixx dropped dead of a heart attack, something that ran in his family.  

Remember that the next time you see a specialist about something dire, like heart disease, cancer, or other serious issues.  I'm told my arteries are pretty clean for a 65-year-old.  I don't eat a very healthy diet, but apparently I have industrial-strength DNA.  Or maybe pizza and banana pudding helps build a strong heart...