TOMI Magazine November 2012

BUSINESS HEALTH THE WAR ON CANCER H OW DOES ONE KNOW WHAT TO DO ?

There has been a ‘war on cancer’ since Nixon announced it in the 60’s. There have been multitudinous hours put into walks, fundrais- ing and scientific study to eradicate this mon- ster. Flags have been waved and lapels have been pinned and many women have fought the fine fight to the finish, defending them- selves against this deadly beast; of course with their champion medical professionals closely by their side (provided the insurance company would pay the allowable expenses). Yet with all of these valiant efforts, the num- bers of ‘cancer survivors’ past year number five of ‘remission’ is staggeringly low, while the cost of receiving care with one cancer drug in particular is outrageously high. Avastin, used to extend life in patients with lung, breast, colon, kidney and ovarian cancer has an average ticket price of about $6,000 per 100 unit dose. No… that’s not the price your insurance pays for yours or the care of a loved one. Your insurance pays certain hospitals that have been found to charge between $7,649 to upwards of $22,680, while others are marking up the price significantly higher; with the pur- chase of independent oncology practices, the hospitals can charge what they want to whom they want and label it as ‘cost- shifting’ (making up for financial loss in one area by justifying inflationary practices in some other). Sounds suspiciously like a cor- nering of the cancer market and a racket to say the least. The lower price end, are large nonprofit hospitals. Imagine if you take your care to a posh private hospital. You will re- ceive a lovely room and ‘lovely’ bill, if you don’t have the ‘required’ insurance. That’s to say if you aren’t laughed out the door for seeking aid in a hospital that you can’t afford. Oh, but you didn’t know our health care sys- tem still lingers in the era of a caste system? Well WAKE UP, because the Philistines are up- on you Sampson. When practices are considered in the light of what has become traditional health care, we can clearly see the erosion occurring to a system that is supposed to be set up to help people. There is signage posted in most hospital facilities that loosely states, ‘Your care is our most important matter. You will receive

is our most important matter. You will receive the care you need, no matter your status or economic standing. We will do this to the point of stabilizing you.” It was a recent oc- currence that a young woman was taken to the hospital by ambulance with a blood pres- sure reading of a little better than 200/90. After spending five (yes… 5) hours in the emergency ‘holding area’ with no hydration nor actual medical attention aside from moni- toring, she was politely told she could leave, while being force fed a foreign high blood pressure medication and several large potassi- um pills 10 minutes prior to her speedy oust- ing. Her blood pressure was a ‘mere’ 204/115 as she was rolled to the exit and her body couldn’t hold the medication any farther than a half block from the brick and mortar of the hospital itself. Her insurance wasn’t good enough for the care it would have required to truly stabilize someone with the extent of kid- ney disease she lives with. The market research firm Packaged Facts reported in July 2009 that the natural health and related care market, which grew 8 percent in 2008 and is approaching $7 billion, is likely to reach sales of $12 billion by 2014. The concern for adverse effects of pharmaceu- tical use and over the counter medicine is on the rise, as many are looking for proactive ra- ther than reactive approaches to health care and maintenance. In line with this concept, consider the idea of ‘self-care cancer treat- ment centers of the world’. Some would think this a ludicrous decision, if not ‘dangerous’ or here’s another word often used… ‘radical’. But the treatment centers are indeed around the world; readily accessible, in your own home, behind the doors of your cabinets and refriger- ators. The real question would be ‘how do I know what to do?’ Tune in next time folks and keep hundreds of thousands of dollars in your pocket, while maintaining your health on the cutting edge . – Tai-Kim Spencer

70 NOVEMBER 2012 WWW.TOMIMAGAZINE.COM