ShareThis

Translate to ...... with one click.

CURRENT EVENTS:


Dec.2014 LauraHillenbrand FaceTheNation
ME+Unbroken Interview HERE -

AND
Dec 2014 ~ "NIH"P2P4ME"

NIH="InsufficientResearch"=DUH !
Treatment= more"SELF Management"
DraftReport HERE
AND
Nov.2014- "Plague"-Published !!
VOA-PodcastAudioInterview HERE
Hardcover+Kindle+AudioBook
Amazon USA Link HERE









Tuesday, November 8, 2011

#122~ Restoring ME/CFS Research, Education, and Patient Care to New Jersey

Restoring ME/CFS Research, Education, and Patient Care to New Jersey
CFSAC Public Testimony, Nov. 8th, 2011
By Kenneth J .Friedman, Ph.D.


I wish to inform the Chronic Fatigue Syndrome Advisory Committee and other stakeholders in the ME/CFS Community that there is a window of opportunity to potentially restore ME/CFS research, education, and other, related, scholarly activities to one of this country’s most populated states: New Jersey. The Governor of New Jersey has formed a UMDNJ Advisory Committee the purpose of which is to advise him as to the future of the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey (UMDNJ). The options range from doing nothing and keeping UMDNJ, the largest, free-standing, academic healthcare University in the United States, as is, to completely dismantling the University and dividing its components and assets amongst other New Jersey academic institutions. The Committee is now willing to accept comments from the public.

The impetus for the establishment of the UMDNJ Advisory Committee may reside in the corroded image of UMDNJ, forever charred into this nation’s psyche, by its purposeful, $35 million dollar, double-billing of Medicare. However, of equal or perhaps greater concern to the ME/CFS Community is the February, 2010 decision of the University to ban ME/CFS research, education and related scholarly activities from the University using the pretext that such activity is not “professional” but rather “personal.” According to that policy, any and all scholarly activity related to ME/CFS may be performed performed by faculty only outside of regular, normal business hours. The policy further forbids use of the University’s portal to the internet for any ME/CFS-related research, and denies use of the University’s email client server for correspondence with anyone about anything related to ME/CFS.

The University’s policy to ban ME/CFS scholarly activity came after two, related New Jersey Medical School attempts to minimize the professional nature of ME/CFS related activities: (1) the New Jersey Medical School refused to consider the Consensus Manual for the Primary Care and Treatment of Chronic Fatigue Syndrome a peer reviewed publication despite its having been reviewed and approved for publication by the Senior Editor of Harvard University Medical Press, Dr. Anthony Kamoroff, and its translation into two foreign languages, and (2) the New Jersey Medical School maintains that five years of service on the CFSAC did not constitute professional, academic service at the national level since individuals without scientific background, such as Magic Johnson has served on Advisory Committees.

UMDNJ controls all three of the state’s medical schools, as well as the state’s only dental school, school of nursing, school of health related professions, school of public health, and graduate school of biomedical sciences. This ban of ME/CFS scholarly activity in the University is, therefore, impacts patient care in the greater New York metropolitan areas, as well as the advancement of ME/CFS research, and healthcare provider education and training throughout the United States. Equally important, however, is the precedent that this establishes for other medical schools and schools training healthcare professionals throughout the United States to establish similar policies.

UMDNJ’s actions are clearly an attack on academic freedom – the right of college and university faculty to pursue their academic interest – and should be opposed on that basis if for no other reason. If UMDNJ wishes to continue as a university, then it must behave as such and afford its faculty the rights afforded to University faculty elsewhere. For UMDNJ to continue as a healthcare university, it needs to comply with the principle of academic freedom.

Of particular concern to the ME/CFS community, is the failure of UMDNJ to honor the CDC’s ME/CFS policy as articulated by its Director in 2006, Dr. Julie Gerberding, who stated, “We are committed to improving the awareness that this [ME/CFS] is a real illness and that people need real medical care and they deserve the best possible help that we can provide.” Why does the Department of Health and Human Services’ continue to provide funding to UMDNJ when UMDNJ maintains that faculty who engage in scholarly activity related to ME/CFS are engaging in non-professional activity? The Department of Health and Human Services continues to give money to a University which knowingly and deliberately obstructs one of its agency’s mandates. Why?

Governor Chris Christie’s UMDNJ Advisory Committee has received testimony from UMDNJ employees expressing the belief that UMDNJ be retained in its current configuration. Current employees may have a vested interest in retaining UMDNJ in its current corpus. Stakeholders of the ME/CFS Community may have a different opinion, since dismantling UMDNJ would remove the ban and restore ME/CFS activities to New Jersey’s healthcare centers. The CFSAC may wish to make a recommendation to the U.S. Secretary of Health based upon the facts conveyed herein and, perhaps, after its own, further investigation.

According to what was published by UMDNJ, comments may be submitted via email to:

The window of opportunity for submitting comments is not specified.
I would not wait long.
Thank-you for your attention.

*************************
Thanks for your Testimony and for supplying the typed copy for the committee.
Send those emails.. Here's a Place WAITING to be Used Properly...
and if used for ME/CFS the Revenge would be OH SO Sweet !!

ShareThis

Sunday, November 6, 2011

#121~ CFSAC this week-Please Read~ THx♥

Please Share and Post Widely


CFSAC Demonstration NIH & CDC

ME/CFS Patients Advocate for Patients

Time:   
Tuesday at 8:00am - Wednesday at 5:00pm
Location:   
Holiday Inn Hotel Washington-Capitol
550 C Street, S.W.
Washington, DC
 ___________________________________________________________
ME/CFS Patients Advocate for Patients :
Email me at bobmiller42@msn.com if you will attend CFSAC for more details
Please SEND an email and let us KNOW you WILL attend either from HOME or in Person.
__________________________________________________________
WASHINGTON, D.C. – On Nov. 8, patients with ME/CFS (myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome) will protest against 25 years of neglect by the National Institutes of Health and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control. The protest will greet members of the Chronic Fatigue Syndrome Advisory Committee (CFSAC) just before they begin their bi-annual meeting at the Holiday Inn Capitol, Columbia Room, 550 C St. S.W., Washington D.C.
___________________________________________________________
Patients attending CFSAC Protest will be provided with Shirts and Props:
We will also have access to Wheel-chairs for those needing assistance
___________________________________________________________
Patients unable to attend CFSAC can be with us via the Web:
Make your own signs, shirts and Banners then post pictures on your own Facebook Page and on the Facebook Page for this Event.
We will update you with video from CFSAC as possible, Watch for updates on the websites that will be posting video & information:
____________________________________________________________
Contact via email the representatives from DHHS listed below starting after 5 pm on Nov.7th Eastern and by Nov. 8th. at 8 am Eastern, so we will have their undivided attention AT the meeting.
____________________________________________________________
TO:
nancy.lee@hhs.gov,
BCC:
howard.koh@hhs.gov, and at ash@hhs.gov,
wanda.jones@hhs.gov,
kathleen.sebelius@hhs.gov,
francis.collins@nih.gov,
afauci@niaid.nih.gov,
BCC: to me at hebs1reel@yahoo.com to track the numbers
Thank You !!


Let them KNOW you resent their descriminating against OUR RIGHTS to be able to access the meeting LIVE since SO Mamny of us have Sensory overlaod and Must turn the Audio DOWN and READ the closed captioning~
Have then NOT been listening to the Testimonies for the last many years ???
WHO are the DEAF ones here ?

1) Let them KNOW we will NOT be Silent for another 25 years and it's TIME to PUT these patients First and 2) get some ACTUAL Correct info out to the MDs that treat us out in the REAL World and 3) to start addressing the issue of Disability for those that have Fallen thru the cracks because of their 25years of lack of addressing this disease, 4) and time for the NIH 

to Fund some CLINICAL TRIALS NOW~
5) Treat those w/o Disability that have been sick for 20+ years and STOP this Genocide that is in it's 3rd Generation.. 6) and tell the FDA to leave our Supplements alone !!! 7) Adopt the 2011 CCCriteria for M.E. and 8) FIX that CDC website that is an International Embarassment and source of Abuse for aboit 15 million people.

__________________________________________________________
Those that are able to attend will do our part. We know you will Stand with us, YES ?
____________________________________________________________
Together we will move science forward,
United We Stand, Divided We Stay home for another 25 years.
So get your signs ready in Person AND ONLINE ♥ Thank you All
************************************
Agenda – CFSAC Fall 2011 Meeting
November 8, 2011

9:00 am    (Eastern Standard Time, USA)
Call to Order
Opening Remarks

Roll Call, Housekeeping
Christopher R. Snell
Chair, CFSAC

Nancy C. Lee, M.D.
Designated Federal Officer
(Wanda's replacement)

9:10 am    International Classification of Diseases-Clinical Modification (ICD-CM)
                by Donna Pickett, RHIA, MPH
National Center for Health Statistics
10:00 am    Public Comment    Public
11:15 am    Break   
11:30 am     Welcome Statement from the  Assistant Secretary for Health   
                Howard K. Koh, M.D., Ph.D
12:00 pm     Agency Updates: AHRQ, CMS, FDA, HRSA    Ex Officio Members
1:00 pm    Subcommittee Lunch = Subcommittee Members
2:00 pm    Public Comment by Public
2:45 pm    Break   
3:00 pm      Future Interdisciplinary Research for CFS Utilizing a Variety of Scientific
Disciplines: lead by Gailen Marshall, M.D., Ph.D. and Committee Discussion
4:00 pm      Committee Discussion
Past CFSAC Recommendations    by Committee Members
5:00 pm    Adjourn     
*************************************
Agenda -- CFSAC Fall 2011 Meeting
November 9, 2011
9:00 am    (Eastern Standard Time, USA)

Call to Order
Opening Remarks

Roll Call, Housekeeping
Christopher R. Snell
Chair, CFSAC

Nancy C. Lee, M.D.
Designated Federal Officer
(Wanda's replacement)

9:15 am    HHS Office on Disability    Rosaly Correa-de-Araujo, M.D, M.Sc.,Ph.D
Deputy Director, HHS Office on Disability
10:00 am    Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Webpage   
Eileen Holderman, Nancy G. Klimas, M.D., and Ermias Belay, M.D.
10:30 am    Break   
10:45 am    Agency Updates: CDC, SSA, NIH-Ex Officio Members
11:45 am    Minimal Elements for Papers-Leonard A. Jason, Ph.D.
12:15 pm    Subcommittee Lunch = Subcommittee Members
1:15 pm    Public Comment-Public
2:15 pm    Break   
2:30 pm    Committee Discussion
Finalize Recommendations by Committee Members
4:30 pm    Adjourn   

****************************************************************
INFO from the CFSAC below, proving they are NOT accommodating patients with "sensory overload" for this meeting that MUST "Read the captions" let alone those with "Hearing Disabilities." THIS is just ONE Reason we are Protesting.... NO LIVE VIDEO this time !!
****************************

Audio Call-In Information
PLEASE Call in and SHOW them the NEED that we ARE Listening.. and we NEED the LIVE video!

The Meeting of the Chronic Fatigue Advisory Committee will be available via AUDIO Lines. The following call-in information will provide access to the meeting via audio lines:

Please dial the participant dial-in number:

Participant Dial-In Number: 1-(866)-395-4129

Please use the following passcodes for each day:
Passcodes:
Tuesday, November 8: 24756185
Wednesday, November 9: 24759937

Please note, each caller can press *0 at any time during the call to contact the operator for support.

There will be an operator on the line to welcome you and each caller will be asked their name and email address (this is NOT a requirement). You will be placed into the conference.

During the lunch hour, callers may hold the line or choose to call back to access the conference.


ShareThis

Tuesday, November 1, 2011

#120~ Nevada Newsmakers Annette Whittemore Interview–Transcript



Following is the transcript of the October 26, 2011 Nevada Newsmakers interview with Annette Whittemore, for those of us that have difficulty with online video:

Sam Shad: There have been a lot of things swirling around and one of the reasons I wanted to have you on this program today is to clear up from what are rumor and innuendo to what are actual facts concerning the institute, and concerning the publication in Science Magazine of the study of a couple of years ago. Bring us up to date on exactly what’s going on. 

Annette: Well first of all Sam thank you so much for letting me come in and talk to you today because I know so many of the people out there that are suffering want to be reassured, and I think that that’s the most important thing today that we talk about from a very calm perspective of the work that is still going on at the institute. And you’re right, there have been, a lot of questions that have, that still remain unanswered about whether or not there is a retrovirus that’s associated with individuals who have this disease and many other diseases. And, I can just tell you that the work is still promising, that we are still headed down that direction very very methodically, and in an attempt to actually prove ourselves wrong. And so far we’ve been unable to do that when it comes to human tissue. But there’s several experiments that are left to be done, and so I can just say that we are still thinking along those lines, still looking very much at all pathogen possibilities, looking at the immune system deficits, and also characterizing the information. So, we’re very very much involved. There’s a study that will be starting November 1st in which we will literally be testing one lab against the other, looking at different methods, and determining which methods are actually the most accurate when looking for pathogens such as a retrovirus. 

Sam: Now, when the article first came out in Science Magazine, the first study, since then, it wasn’t completely retracted. There was one person out of many that retracted a portion of their work. Could you explain that for us? 

Annette: That’s right. Dr. Silverman found in his laboratory that there was contamination of the samples that he had worked on, and therefore he removed his part, and I think he had one figure in this entire paper. However, there still is a lot of confusion about what we think we’re seeing in the actual patients. And what some of the doctors have described as XMRV, that was actually created in a laboratory. And so, at the end of the day, is there just one XMRV or are there several? And are we looking at a virus that’s completely different in our subset of patients versus the ones that were looked at in the tissues of prostate cancer. So far we’re saying “not completely different”… 

Sam: …and that was what was originally found.. 

Annette: Right, right. It was originally found in Dr. Silverman’s laboratory, and Dr. Silverman originally found it in prostate cancer. And the connection that Dr. Lombardi eventually they ended up looking at this together along with Dr. Mikovits and so it’s still an incredible puzzle. But we’re really excited about the fact that what has happened as a result of this has been so much more attention, so much more funding and a very very serious validation of this illness that just hadn’t occurred before the WPI came along. 

Sam: One of the things that I always like to refer to so the people who are not as familiar with this as we might be, that this is kind of like when they came up with, not a cure, but a way to control AIDS through the retrovirus. It wasn’t a one simple thing. It developed over many many years. And now, AIDS is not a death sentence. 

Annette: Absolutely, and it does take time. A process like this takes so much time to go from discovery to actual medicine within the doctors’ offices. But you know, that is what the WPI is all about. We are very much patient centered. We’re here to provide ultimate treatments that are going to be effective for patients, and we’re here to find the truth. So whatever it is, there..I have..I think we’re really trying to keep our egos out of it, and be able to say that t he most important thing, and to keep remembering it, is the patient, and getting effective treatments. So we need to understand exactly what’s causing the problems, and then we can figure out how to solve those problems. 

Sam: One of the problems is that in the field of medical research, there are tremendous egos. 

Annette: (laugh) yes. And it’s been very very difficult as a result. Sometimes the politics and the science…I think we talked about this before…can be extremely difficult. But in this case I really do believe, and I think the majority of people out there are very very sincere when they say that they’re concerned now about these patients. They’re concerned about getting these answers right, and we’re looking forward to working with them. 

Sam: Alright, let’s take a break. With Annette WHittemore when we come back. 

Sam: And back on Nevada Newsmakers we continue our conversation with Annette Whittemore. She is the founder and president of the Whittemore Peterson Institute. Your research director left who’d been on this program many times. What does this mean for WPI and who is the current research team? 

Annette: Well right now we are moving forward with the same research team that we’ve had all along, but I think a lot of people didn’t realize the depth of that team, and the number of people that are working there. So we’re still doing the exact same thing that we have been doing, in a very organized and collaborative fashion. We’ll miss Dr. Mikovits but Dr. Lombardi is stepping in and taking control, organizing and reprioritizing our studies. 

Sam: Now, you’ve been doing a lot of testing over the last couple of years for XMRV, so I mean, this is a real thing. It’s not that you’re testing for people and it’s not showing up. 

Annette: Well this is, absolutely. And you know, Harvey and I were always very very interested in continuing to ask that question every other month pretty much…is it real, is it infectious, has anybody changed their mind at the NCI, for instance. And I recently was up in Ottawa in a conference and asked two researchers up there, not ones that work with us directly. And they both said it’s real and it’s infectious. The question is, where is it in this population. Is it in this population of individuals, and more importantly, how do we develop the most accurate test that we can, so we can look at this particular virus. But I think again that we don’t want to limit ourselves to one particular virus strain, or one particular virus. We want to continue to keep looking at the question..is there an active retroviral infection in the patients that is coming from outside, rather than is there an actual endogenous or internal retrovirus that is becoming active. And you know this is exciting, it’s very very very complicated, and I don’t want to pretend at all to be a scientist. I get the, I’m so fortunate to be able to listen to all of this and be able to talk to you about it, but you know I’m a wife. 

Sam: You’ve become a sponge for this information. You’ve absorbed it and passed it on. But it’s interesting as time has developed now that you’re seeing that it may take more than one form. 

Annette: Absolutely. You know we see that, I like to tell some of the patients this, that we see the head … my understanding is that we see the head, we see the tail basically, if we were to see an animal…as a virus…but we don’t see the entire body. We’re not sure what’s going on, so the next step really is to get this material and get it deep sequenced so that we can fully characterize what it is that we’re seeing. 

Sam: One of the things, you know, in this economy obviously everybody’s taking a huge financial hit. But NV Energy, the power company in Nevada really stepped up to the plate with a huge donation. 

Annette: They absolutely did. They were phenomenal. Recently they donated a hundred thousand dollars to the cause. We’ve had Vivint and Chase Community Giving which are online community voting grant programs. I think we’ve raised about a hundred eighty five thousand dollars through that. And then just recently we had our fundraiser at the Atlantis. The Farahis who hosted that event were just phenomenal and they even donated back the proceeds from the event. 

Sam: That was here in Reno 

Annette: That was here in Reno, in September. I’ve got to say it was one of the best events we’ve ever had. There was so much love in that room. And even all the way down to the individual who came out from Nashville, Suzi Oravec, and gave her time, donated her time to provide music for all of us. It was an outstanding evening. 

Sam: Now, you started out as an ordinary mom. I shouldn’t say ordinary mom..a mom..
Annette:…Mom of 5 children 

Sam:…you were a spectacular mom. But your daughter Andrea contracted this. And when you were last on the program, you were saying that the treatments that are coming from the clinic are, were helping her. Is she still progressing in a good direction? 

Annette: She is. And you know we’re just really very very thankful that that’s occurred. And we’re trying very very hard to take a look at that, and Andrea thank goodness is willing to be a donor so that we can frequently check to see what are the differences between the times that she’s ill and the times that she’s well so that we can determine what is it exactly that’s going on, what are the treatments that are being most helpful, and why. We really don’t have all those answers yet. Those are things that we’re studying and I guess I’m just happy that she’s close by and she’s willing to donate her blood to that particular research. 

Sam: How are you being helped at this point by the National Institute of Health? Are they being helpful at this point? 


Annette: Well I think they are, because they’ve got a lot of researchers internally that are taking a look at this. And beneath all of the controversies that are going on in this particular virus, there’s some really good work. There’s some solid work that’s coming out. Not long ago there was a paper that said XMRV can infect neuronal cells for instance, or neurons, in the brain. And that was a key paper. I think there was a paper that also explained how easily it was transmitted, which would be, it’s very very unusual that a retrovirus could be transmitted potentially airborne. So there are some very interesting facts, and some good research is going on inside the NIH on this particular virus right now. 

Sam: Alright, so I always like to ask you to tell the folks out there who are watching, literally all over the world, what your advice is to them about where everything sits at this point in time. 

Annette: Well I think my best advice is to be able to remain calm, and to be reassured that the changes don’t mean that anyone’s going away, or that any way our commitment has been lessened. Or that the commitment of others has been lessened. In fact, it’s just the opposite. So there are more federal dollars today going into research in this particular disease. There are more individuals committed. An individual by the name of Glen Hutchins just committed ten million dollars to what he calls the Fatigue Initiative, and he’s brought new researchers into the field. Dr. Peterson has started a foundation and brought additional researchers into the field. So we’ve got some outstanding retrovirologists and virologists and immunologists that were never in this field before, that committed to helping us discover the answers. That is really the message… 

Sam: What’s your level of optimism over the next couple of years? 

Annette: Oh my goodness. I’ve got to say that we are making progress at a rate that is phenomenal. And ..on the one hand. On the other hand, we have to be patient. This is not an overnight process. I don’t expect it’ll take 20 years. I’m too impatient for that and I don’t think that’s appropriate. But it’s not going to happen tomorrow. So people need to sit back, take a deep breath, be reassured, and be hopeful. But, you know, let’s watch, let’s see what happens. Let’s be right about this. Let’s be good about this. 

Sam: That’s the most important thing, to be right about it. Always a pleasure. Thank you so much for being here.

***
Reprinted with gratitude and permission from Khaly:
http://cfsuntied.com/blog2/2011/10/27/nevada-newsmakers-annette-whittemore-interviewtranscript/

ShareThis