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Show lockci y iNEWd, inursqoy, uctocer ' Cancer, 'It's That Thing ys ru a y ' 01 Said My Disappointed Doctor Editors Note: On Aug. 12 last year Delos Smith, who as Science Editor of United Press International for more than 20 jears has been closely reporting all the efforts to find a cancer cure, learned that he had cancer, a deadly cancer of the lung. This is his personal story of how he and a determined team of doctors fought it. By DELOS SMITH - NEW YORK (UPI) In the now burgeoning government-backeconquer cancer crusade cancer authorities are bringing obscured facts into the open for the purpose of changing them. The facts d are these: people die of cancer who needn't die of it. They die because the lull range of treatment techniques is not applied. This happens because many doctors are poorly informed about the full range and its expanding potentials. Some I These facts animate the cancer- au-- . thorities now planning the effort to con- quer cancer with virtually unlimited federal tax funds which eventually will total in the billions of dollars. Their goal is more and more to conquer cancer m the ly reduced if all cancers were treated aggressively over the full range of treatment techniques To b mg that about they propose sprinkling the country with what they call comprehensive cancer centers. Each one will be a fountain of the effective treatment techniques for all cancers for its region's doctors and the patients in their care. The goal is to make from these centers an automatic reaction of any doctor confronted by a cancer which threatens to overwhelm his therapeutic skills. latest and most help-seekin- g Each center will be operated by doctors whose specialized skills are of high quality and collectively cover all forms of maligrant disease and who practice as teams. They wdl be backed by the best in equipment and other facilities and by research, both basic e and applied - people who have it No less an authority , than Dr. Arthur I. Holleb, senior vice president of the American Cancer Society for research and medical affairs, has no hesitancy in Most cancers are readily saying: curable cancer is an essentially curable disease. a statement marks evolv 'g changes in the knowledgeable cancer outlook. Not many years ago experts such as he avoided the word cure, lest they gave unjustifiable hope to cancer patients and their relatives. The treatment techniques of surgery, radiation and chemotherapy have Such been becoming more effective although more technically complex, singly or in combination the authorities have no doubt cancers death toll would be substantial But Four are well known for their many advances in treating cancers of a kinds. They are: Childrens Cancer Research Boston; Memorial Cancer Center, New York. Roswell Park Memorial Institute, Buffalo, N.Y.; University of Texas M D Anderson Hospital and Tumor Institute. Houston Foundation, Sloan-Ketterin- g Circumstance put this reporter inside one of the four, on the firing line of cancer therapeutics, to learn first hand what the comprehensive in treatment can mean to a cancer patient. He had developed his own cancer, a notorious a cancer of the lung. killer-cance- The first sign from my lung cancer was a weakness in my left leg. I felt well and hardly noticed it until it contaminated the rhythm of walking. When it persisted for some six weeks I went to my doctor, and internist with a middle class practice who ranks as a professor of medicine. His hunt for whatever was wrong began with pictures of the hips. One indicated stress originating from the Dirty Tricks - carefully coordinated inside the White House. The political sabotage had these objec- tives: 1. When Sen. Ed Muskie pulled ahead of the Presiin the polls last year, worried W'hite House aides sought to trip up the popular Maine Democrat. Muskie has complained that lie was a victim of a systematic cam-Some of the dirty paign of sabotage. tricks, including the forged "Canuck letter which made it appear he condoned a racial slur, caused him serious political damage and contributed to his poor showing in the presidential prident j maries. political strategists in the White House concluded that George Walcandidate would lace as a third-parttake votes away from the President but as a Democratic contender could cause mischief for the Democrats. The White House, therefore, encouraged the Alabama governor to seek the Democratic nomination and worked undercover to help roll up votes for him m the Democratic primaries. In the crucial Florida primary, Sen. Henry Jackson contended with Wallace for conservative Democratic votes. Jackson tells us his campaign was hampered by political sabotage, not unlike the dirty tricks played by Muskie. 3. The White House strategists considered George McGovern to be the easiest contender for the President to beat. They sought, therefore, to help McGovern win the California primary, winch sewed up the Democratic nomination for him. McGoverns chief rival, Hubert Cali Humphrey, told us his campaign m 2. The y v Dear Dr. Thosteson: My daughter has been getting carsick Since she was 6. Our doctor assures me she will outgrow it and in the meantime has the given her a medication. However, medication works by putting her to sleep, and I am concerned about the emotional problems which have resulted. She refuses to go on class trips or accept any invitation that means riding in a car. White House sources tell us that the of staff, H. R, Ilalde-man- , was the key man who coordinated the efforts to hamstring Muskie, boost Wallace and abet McGoverns nomination. Although there is no direct documentary link between Haldeman and the sabotage squad, he issued instructions and received reports on all phases of the campaign. Presidential appointments secretary Dwight Chapin, who has been linked by the Washington Post to the sabotage operation, worked closely with Haldeman, say our sources. White House aide Gordon Strachan, whom Time magazine s claims was also involved with the is a member of department, Haldemans staff. Perhaps the most irresponsible of the dirty tricks was a reported attempt to shut off the runway lights on a small field in northern Florida where Senator Jackson planned to land. The senator received a report that someone had phoned the airport to cancel arrangements for lighting the runway . The call was countermanded, however, in time to prevent a serious accident to Jackson and his party. Presidents chief With all the serious illnesses, this but if probably doesn't seem important, sug- any I would appreciate you could, but it's One suggestion Is that, since there are various seasick" temedies, trying some of the others, or trying smaller doses, perhaps may calm her down enough without putting her to sleep. It may take a little experimentation, and I hope shell go along with the effort. After all, shes missing a lot of fun the way things are. are pretty motion-sicknes- s remedies good these days, one possible alternative might be worth a try: very small doses of phenobarbital or some ' f he said said future in a joint exercise of compassion She wasn't tempted because she knew knew too much to be deceived I had been preparing her for bad news though much more gently. 1 Keep your imagination out of it!" he barked Over the years I had known him this was the first time I had provoked his tightly disciplined mind into emotional reaction. He is a medical science pillar of a voluntary hospital prestigious which supports a medical school, and I was admitted as a patient for diagnosis.. A needle aspiration biopsy of the thigh bone spot was for of a which disorder disease, is Paget's bone metabolism, for malignancy, or for anything else. At least it showed how wrong my cancer guess had been, my doctor frond said large, "non-specifi- c The next day the thigh became incidental. My chest Imd been as part of the routine workup. The film showed a shadow on the left lung "the size of a golf ball. he said, his voice tight and dismal Then thats it, I said, recognizing an end of uncertainty For that I was reprimanded. Again he was emotional A shadow on a film was only a shadow, he said, instructing me to be calm and open of mind while his consultants looked into it. To him it was a physicianly duty to cushion a patient against dreadful truth. But a physician is bound to tell someone. That evening he spoke privately to my wife. Jeannette, dear, I must prepare you for some very bad news, he said. In all probability he has a lung cancer. Let us hope it has not passed beyond the reach of surgery because surgery is his one small chance. This was an unpleasant job required of any physician from time to time There is no best way of doing it. As her physician, he prescribed tranquilizing pills. As my physician he instructed her My doctor's consultants were two chest physicians. They intended opening my chest for a direct look at the shadow', provided they found no indication a cancer had spread outward from the lung. They found it, m a hardened lymph node at the base of the neck. It was excised and sent to the pathology laboratory w hich needed three days for he inspection that would reveal any malignant cells. If there were any my lung cancer was inoperable. My doctor told my wife the lymph node had had a highly abnormal appearance which probably meant it was cancerous. She asked about alternatives of he dismissed surgery. Chemotherapy with a doleful wordlessly, shrug. As for You have to remember, radiation Jeannette, dear, that radiation kills good cells as well as bad cells " One should sympathize two-yea- During the decade of the ninetee- When he got the laboratory report his I ordeal was at hand. I could go home was being spared surgery, he said. Then what? I asked. Well treat the symptoms as they arise, he said and I understood the modality would be morphine and other analgesics, which would ease me as painlessly as possible into death. Cut out the crap level with me, you like," he said, and I wrote the wo names he gave me. Positive for what? That thing! What thing? he said. Carcinoma, you how sorry I am. I cant tell I know," I said. Its tough to be a a time like this. doctor at He changed This compelled him to mutter the oratory report had been positive. lab- bering wife. the subject by rememhad mentioned radiation to my Ill refer you to a radiologist if I the Upper Colorado River Reclamation Project was largely built. The military was Utahs largest employ er, and interstate highways laced four-lanthe state with e roads come under fire, even at home, with one group of Utahns calling for a halt in the Central Utah Project just as it got nearly $30 million in federal construction funds. As tne interstate highway system moves toward completion in the state, the highway trust fund has become a tempting target for urban mass transit builders. have succeeded in in halting the use of poisons to control coyotes and other western predators. The conservation groups showed their muscle just this week by killing a provision for a state road between Bullfrog Basin As the nineteen-seventieopened, the federal interest in Utah began to change, and in the session just over. Congress began to reshape its treatment of the s state. While Hill AFB remains the biggest industry in Utah, Fort Douglas has been closed and Dugway has seen its chemi-- . warfare role virtually ended. in the state has begun to and Glen, Canyon City Canyon Recreation Area in Glen Without doubt the 93rd Congress will be a different place for westerners, if only because Rep. Wayne N. Aspinall. will be missing from the chairmanship of the House Interior Committee after 14 years of service, the victim of a conservationists purge. Aspinalls passing came at the end of a year when reclamation was under such fire that extension of the Upper Colorado River Project authorization was in question for a time. Conservation Plug Ears Till groups fell that the big water projects unnecessarily destroy the landscape. At the same time, reclamation itself has been changing its emphasis toward providing, increasingly, water for the cities rather than for further irrigation projects. The money for future water work may be harder to get from a Congress that is influenced more by the East and West coasts, becoming less responsive to the interests of farmers, ranchers, and miners Oil shale, strip mining, and power plants were on the defensive in the 92nd Congress, and they will be under more pressure next year. The Power Kaiparowitz seen as an unal-- ' loved benefit, bringing jobs and income to the southern half of Utah. Now it may never be built because of its environmental impact. proposed Plant was originally At the same threatens to time, an energy crisis require more electric power, more oil, more coal. The next Congress, and the one after that, wdl likely deal with those priorities, or settle them by neglect. While this Congress approved the Capitol Reef and Arches National Parks, expanded Canyonlands, and set up an Love Seat Picked Up fte bought a love seat from a S.L. trim is breaking away from it. I have called the seller six times and they promise to send someone out but never do. Can you help? E.L., store in April. The wood Tomorrow: The trial of overcoming a killer cancer. r extended Glen Canyon Recreation Area, the emphasis seems to be moving from parks where tourists may drive to wil--- 1 derness reservations where cars will be banned. If the polls are correct, Utahs representation here will not be changed next and ' year. Sen. Frank E. Moss, the state's senior senator, Republican Wallace Bennett, are not up for election and will b back. Rep. Gunn McKay, looks safe in the First District. and Rep. Sherman P. Lloyd seems likely to win a narrow victory in the Second District. Of the four. Sen. Moss seems to move most closely with the new conservationist tide. ' ' A real shift in the states political balance here would come from the retire- ment of Sen. Bennett, now 72 and the victim of bleeding ulcers a year ago. Sen. Bennett is up for reelection in 1974. and his replacement, if he docs not run again, is not yet discernible in either party. Reclamation, . A roads, and exploitation natural resources have been basic in the West. Recreation, conservation, and., wilderness may be fads incapable of replacing those economic interests, or they may become dominant. of In the 92nd Congress, the lines were drawn, but the issue not decided. they indicated there were more, things to be done. When I went in to get the ear the clutch made a terrible rattle, Instead of going back in and arguing. job went to another mechanic to verify the noise and vibration. Then went home and took the engine out and did the job,, myself. It runs perfectly now. Now they, have called me and want to know why havent paid them. told them I had to make sure there wasnt any damage. There wasnt so I paid them. They heard my whole story but were indifferent," Thanks for hearing me out. If this kind of' thing can happen to me then it must be happening to others. I value your opinion, Let me know what you think. W.Y.,' Ogden. 1 1 You may wrifo la Oo-l- l The person you talked to those six Home Liens Lifted I Bought a home from a S.L. realtor-whilI was living out of state. It was his own home, I was told. This was In 1970. My neighbor wants to buy the place and is ready to pay me cash for my equity, but when the deal went to the title company, it was found there were liens on the property of $0,909. What can I do? I have called this realtor several times and he keeps saying Everything will be But he is doing nothing. ail right. Mrs. M.M.K., Salt Lake City. How come you didnt have a title search made before you purchased to V t 1 Man, Box 1257 Salt Lok City, Utah 841 10 times just never relayed the ir.fo to anyone. it seems. Our letter to them was the first they knew of it. As of now' they have had the love seat picked up for repair. ' I , Noise Culprit Found There is a service station near our house where the noise is so bad it about drives me and my husband out of our minds. Nearly every day they race motorcycles around and around. We feel we have a right to expect peace and quiet. We have complained before but it doesn't do any good. We dont know what to do. B.M., Salt Lake City. Batten down your ears until the police can pinpoint that noise offender. When they were out that way at the request of the Board of Health, no motorcycle noise broke the quiet, But you can be assured they'll keep on the lookout. Since the noise ordinance went into effect July 19 for the county and Aug. 25 for the city approximately 50 complaints and requests for noise measurements have been answered ranging from air conditioners and industrial plants to rock bands and steam Whistles. The BH is the coordinator in ei.forcing the recently enacted law. The enforcers are the sheriff in the county and the police in the city. Not at all willingly he was resigning me to my disease. This happened on Aug. 22, 1971. Mark the date. According to the established statistical pattern I could have been dead since February of this year Or Economy Win In Utah? banning DDT and other pesticides, and n-sixties. Reclamation I said. Conservationists high-spee- with my doc- tor, Cancer had frustrated his therapeutic efforts so many times he was emotional about it. He had been licked. Besides, this patient was also a friend. That made defeat even more personal. OUR MAN IN WASHINGTON WASHINGTON The 92nd Congress gave Utah two national parks and spent a record amount on the Central Utah Reclamation Projr ect, but the session may well mark and historic turning point in the political priorities of Utah and the West dirty-trick- While the cancer," I - fornia was often fouled up. But except for a phony press release put out on his letterhead, Humphrey said he had no evidence of political sabotage. I have to take some credit for the foul-up- s myself, he said. 4. Once McGovern was nominated, the White House objective was to portray McGovern as a radical and to link him with irresponsible elements who favored political violence. A Washington Post source claims White House aide an Howard Hunt tried to organize attack by demonstrators in McGovern's name upon the Doral Beach Hotel, which served as President Nixons convention headquarters at Miami Beach. Subsequent to the conventions, McGovern's campaign has been subjected to political harassment said his national coordinator, Frank Mankiewicz. Maybe not a serious illness, serious to her. Paget's disease, Or it might be By GORDON ELIOT WHITE en . Might be to be her usual cheerful seif when she saw me and to give no inkling of what he had told her He expected her to conspire with him to blind me to my lack ol Will Ecology Medicine Affects Emotions Girl Of Carsick Pre-TeBy GEORGE C. THOSTESON, M D. it ac-ti- ity Crew Victimizes Demos By JACK ANDERSON WASHINGTON The efforts of President Nixons dirty tricks crew to disrupt and discredit the Democrats, say inve' tigators, were left thigh bone When visualized showed a spot of abnormal metabolic ranees? Even so. the seller should have told you about any Lons. We are not sure if he had the right to sell a house without a clear title. It would seem that the agreement should have made him not you, for any prior responsible, claims. However, it seems that both of you had some responsibilities that were overlooked. When we checked the realtor he told us that all would be cleared up in a week, that he was going to sign an affidavit that a clear title was upcoming. We relayed this to you, but advised you to confer with the mortgage holder, a bank. A few days later you wrote us and said that thanks to us, you were going to get a dear title. You said the bank had called and said the judgments against the property were being lifted. No Kick Coming I took my car to the authorized dealer '' t jhn They offered to remove the motor antj. clutch at no charge to you, and the part would be completely reinspected in of any third party or qualified of your choice. You didnt want to do this, so we dont think youve got mechanic any kick coming. We do think you should have griped to them BEFORE you took it to another mechanic end the job re-di- d yourself. (Editors Note: We're sorry the number ol calls and the volume of moil make o impossible to answer every question. Please, no medical o legal questions. Don't send stamps or envelopes, as answers can only be Biven In this column. Only questions ol seneroi will be answered. Give your name, address and teleohone number not lor publication but ,V- 1 - ' |