[Marlene]

Dick,

There's a book you need to read before you head to the US Captiol...It's called "Our Daily Meds" by Melody Peterson. I just finished it and am still trying to recover emotionally from it. She lays out how the pharmaceutial industry is more about marketing than science. Medical decisions are based on drug company's marketing instead of good science. One thing that stood out for me because it's an issue we all face with MDS/AA/PNH is cost of medication. One drug executive basically admitted that they take into account the following when setting a price for the drug....1) The fewer the options, the higher the price; 2 - The greater the desperation, the higher the price; and 3 - The greater the suffering, the higher the price. This just breaks my heart to hear this and the many other things they do for profit. Saving lives has become secondary.

She addressed so many things that have gone wrong with our medical model that I think you'll find it interesting. One drug guy said "there are two things that will kill a drug" "one is that it kills too many in the clinical trial and second is that it cures someone". Repeat/lifelong customers is the goal.

Anyways....I just thought this post was timely for me since I just finished the book and thought others might find the book interesting. It certainly gives you something to think about. The final message is to have a "healthy skepticism" when it comes to taking drugs or undergoing any medical procedure.

Marlene