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Barbara, Well put. Greg 47/35/35 ----- Original Message ----- From: "Barbara Patterson" <[log in to unmask]> To: <[log in to unmask]> Sent: Sunday, September 10, 2000 12:22 PM Subject: Re: "Parkinson's Disease - A New Hope" , Special Report > Late last week, former Prime Minister of Canada, Pierre Trudeau, was in > hospital with an undisclosed illness. The report stated that Mr. > Trudeau also has Parkinson's. In a later newscast, Dr. Calne, a much > respected neurologist and expert on Parkinson's, was interviewed. Dr. > Calne said (not quoting word for word) that the seriousness of Parkinson's > was often understated. Besides the daily and progressively more > difficult challenges of living with Parkinson's being underestimated, he > said that progression of the disorder eventually involves other muscle > groups such as those used in swallowing. Many people with Parkinson's > die from saliva and/or food getting into the lungs because of pd's effect > on those muscles. > > My point is that Parkinson's, not pneumonia, was the real cause of > death. To state otherwise would be similar to saying that a person who was > shot and fell to the ground died from the fall rather than the gunshot. > (I really must stop reading so many murder/mystery stories!) > > Until and unless the devastation of Parkinson's is recognized, research > into the causes/treatments/cure will continue to be underfunded. > > People like Janet Reno and Michael J. Fox and Muhammed Ali are doing > their share, so let's do ours...walk for Parkinson's; talk about it; if > you are fumbling for change at a checkout, explain that you have > Parkinson's. I know it's easier to stay home so people won't stare at us > shaking or moving rigidly and slowly or spilling our tea, but letting > them see that may inspire them to contribute to research the next time > they are asked. > > INVISIBLE NO MORE > > Barb > ============================================================================ > Barbara Patterson [log in to unmask] > HSC 2J22 905-525-9140, ext. 22403 > School of Nursing > ============================================================================ >