[arista]

I Will agree to radiotherapy if my son has cancer, says mum who ran away to stop him receiving the life-saving treatment
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/arti...#ixzz2EbBYzP64

[Kizzy]

Hmm, right wing tabloid view?
No thankyou.

[Livia]

A worrying thing about this whole scenario is that some people seem to assume that the mother cares more, and worries more about her son than the father does. Because she's the one with the wacky ideas, some people assume she's thinking more deeply about it. I would be very interested to hear more from the father.

[Kizzy]

Nobody has suggested that at all.. And her ideas are far from 'wacky' ,in fact they seem to be shared by the medical professionals who have now decided to wait to see if the 1cm mass they have detected is the cancer returning or simply scar tissue from the removal of the tumour.

[Cherie]

Originally Posted by Livia

I wonder if the parents of the children you work with think the same as you? I have a child with special needs in my family, a child who was perfectly healthy until he was six. He is as loved and adored now as he was before. And if you think I was dismissing anything about this case with a wave of my hand, then you really have got a warped view of me.

Think the same as me? you have no idea of what I think, as the situation is a lot more complex than the hysterical reporting would have us believe, and as to what the parents of the children in our school think, a significant proportion of the children who come to us live in Childrens Homes and most of those who live with their families have carers and respite, some are loved and adored, some parents find it difficult to to cope and place their children in care and have them home at weekends or visit them in the home, and some do not have any access to their families at all and are in full time care, that is the harsh reality, its not always a happy ending as in your relatives case.

[Livia]

Originally Posted by Cherie Christmas

Think the same as me? you have no idea of what I think, as the situation is a lot more complex than the hysterical reporting would have us believe, and as to what the parents of the children in our school think, a significant proportion of the children who come to us live in Childrens Homes and most of those who live with their families have carers and respite, some are loved and adored, some parents find it difficult to to cope and place their children in care and have them home at weekends or visit them in the home, and some do not have any access to their families at all and are in full time care, that is the harsh reality, its not always a happy ending as in your relatives case.

I was responding to what you said in the post I quoted. I assumed you'd thought about what you'd said which is why I used the phrase "think the same as you". And I wouldn't call my relative's case a "happy ending" either. But really, none of that is the question here. As far as I can see, the mother of this child has taken some decisions that both the doctors and the child's father have not considered were in the child's best interest. Now the law has had to step in. I hope whatever decision they come to, the child gets the best care available.

[Kizzy]

The law did not step in, the mother made no decisions, the father was torn but willing to agree to radiotherapy.
Cherie there was a very interesting report in the guardian today outlining the facts.

[arista]

Yes but on TV News
the mother says ok to treatment
if her son gets worse , kizzy

[Livia]

Originally Posted by arista

Yes but on TV News
the mother says ok to treatment
if her son gets worse , kizzy

Now the small tumour has been found, the "change in the medical landscape" to which the judge referred, I assume. Had she not whisked him away, perhaps they could have found it weeks ago.

[Kizzy]

Originally Posted by arista

Yes but on TV News
the mother says ok to treatment
if her son gets worse , kizzy

No arista.....
The mother said ok to radiotherapy only if the 1cm mass they have seen is actually the cancer returning and not simply innocent scar tissue...
She disagreed with the use of radiation as there was no proof that it was entirely necessary.
I have been following this with great interest.

[arista]

Originally Posted by Livia

Now the small tumour has been found, the "change in the medical landscape" to which the judge referred, I assume. Had she not whisked him away, perhaps they could have found it weeks ago.

Great points

[arista]

Originally Posted by Merry Kizzmas

No arista.....
The mother said ok to radiotherapy only if the 1cm mass they have seen is actually the cancer returning and not simply innocent scar tissue...
She disagreed with the use of radiation as there was no proof that it was entirely necessary.
I have been following this with great interest.

Yes sure 1cm mass.

If that gets worse
then she will allow the Doctor to to take over

[Kizzy]

If what gets worse?...
have you seen something the doctors haven't?

[arista]

Originally Posted by Merry Kizzmas

If what gets worse?...have you seen something the doctors haven't?

The Boys Cancer

[Kizzy]

What cancer?

[arista]

"agree to radiotherapy if my son has cancer, says mum"

the possible cancer the mother spoke of, kizzy

[Kizzy]

Originally Posted by arista

"agree to radiotherapy if my son has cancer, says mum"

the possible cancer the mother spoke of, kizzy

The key word there being if...
was there ever any dispute that she would refuse treatment if the cancer returned?....no.
Following the removal of the tumour she agreed to chemotherapy but refused radiotherapy.
All she was asking was that he was given the chance to beat the cancer without having his brain fried...
Is that so wrong?

[Cherie]

Originally Posted by Merry Kizzmas

The key word there being if...
was there ever any dispute that she would refuse treatment if the cancer returned?....no.
Following the removal of the tumour she agreed to chemotherapy but refused radiotherapy.
All she was asking was that he was given the chance to beat the cancer without having his brain fried...
Is that so wrong?

No, and I believe she is right to question and research all the options and not be bullied into giving a treatment to her son she does not feel comfortable with.

[Livia]

Originally Posted by arista

"agree to radiotherapy if my son has cancer, says mum"...

And Dad is putting his trust in the medical team to do what's best for his son. I don't understand why some people are beginning to look on the doctors and medics in this case like they're a bunch of Frankensteins ready to "fry" a child's brain for no good reason.

Originally Posted by Livia

And Dad is putting his trust in the medical team to do what's best for his son. I don't understand why some people are beginning to look on the doctors and medics in this case like they're a bunch of Frankensteins ready to "fry" a child's brain for no good reason.

Because people believe in a mothers intuition/instincts far more than medical science.

[Cherie]

Originally Posted by Livia

And Dad is putting his trust in the medical team to do what's best for his son. I don't understand why some people are beginning to look on the doctors and medics in this case like they're a bunch of Frankensteins ready to "fry" a child's brain for no good reason.

Because from personal experience, a lot of box ticking and arse covering goes on in the medical profession, they are not infallible, if I was unsure, I would ask for a second/third/fourth opinion until I was satisfied how to proceed.

[Livia]

Originally Posted by Jesus.H.Christ

Because people believe in a mothers intuition/instincts far more than medical science.

Yes, something that's always mystified me. What about the father's intuition? Having a kid doesn't make you all-knowing, nor does it necessarily make you particularly maternal. Karen Matthews. Nuff said.

People say they don't believe in medical science... until they need it. Then they're in Casualty demanding immediate attention.

[Kizzy]

Intution?
It had nothing to do with intuition...
She and her ex partner face the worst decision ever to be faced by parents. To suggest that they are poles apart in their approach to this is wrong.
As said radiotherapy is effective on the treatment of cancer, but harmful on healthy cells.
The research, consultations and discussions these parents will have had since the removal of the tumour in october on how best to proceed ....
How that leads to these suggestions it's simply the mothers whim as some crazed hippy is beyond ignorance.

[Cherie]

Originally Posted by Livia

Yes, something that's always mystified me. What about the father's intuition? Having a kid doesn't make you all-knowing, nor does it necessarily make you particularly maternal. Karen Matthews. Nuff said.

People say they don't believe in medical science... until they need it. Then they're in Casualty demanding immediate attention.

Naturally that is what I would do, but I wouldn't leave my brain at home, doctors have been known to make mistakes too!

Originally Posted by Cherie Christmas

Naturally that is what I would do, but I wouldn't leave my brain at home, doctors have been known to make mistakes too!

Of course, but it's always funny how it only happens in certain areas of science. I've never seen anyone challenge gravity at 35,000ft.

I'm not having a go at you, as science is the only discipline where people try to prove their own work wrong.