The way I read u/ecohen16's telling is that Mitnick first beat apathy and bureaucracy just to have a shot at mitigating a disease, thereby postponed the inevitable.
I've lived it. Late 80s, I had a terminal diagnosis. Lucky me, my doc found a clinical trial, and fought like hell to get my HMO to pay. Justification was for org to use me to learn about emerging treatment (stem cell transplant is current variation).
A few years ago, my buddy got a terminal diagnosis. Apparent chronic sports related injury turned out to be a late stage tumor, which had spread. Prognosis was 3 - 6 months. None of his care providers were interested in escalating, only talking about palliative care and hospice. He did exactly as Mitnick. Managed to get enrolled in a clinical trial using immunotherapy for his precise diagnosis. Timing wise, a few weeks either way and he'd be dead. Dumb luck.
I can give a few more examples. (And 100s of counter examples.)
Do patients beat cancer?
Of course not. Among the survivors I know, disease (like cancer) is part of life and you deal with it. Or not.
But, some times, if we're really stubborn, and have sufficient resources and support and dumb luck, we can do things to live a little bit longer.
> that did not "Fight hard enough"
Sometimes the patient, family, and especially the care providers don't fight hard enough. For all sorts of reasons. Probably because awareness of mortality made humans neurotic and we're all just winging it. Probably because everything is russian dolls of triage.
Any way, it's just a metaphor. Chose the one that works for you.
Just like I refuse to victim blame/shame, I'm not going to judge another person's coping mechanisms.
The way I read u/ecohen16's telling is that Mitnick first beat apathy and bureaucracy just to have a shot at mitigating a disease, thereby postponed the inevitable.
I've lived it. Late 80s, I had a terminal diagnosis. Lucky me, my doc found a clinical trial, and fought like hell to get my HMO to pay. Justification was for org to use me to learn about emerging treatment (stem cell transplant is current variation).
A few years ago, my buddy got a terminal diagnosis. Apparent chronic sports related injury turned out to be a late stage tumor, which had spread. Prognosis was 3 - 6 months. None of his care providers were interested in escalating, only talking about palliative care and hospice. He did exactly as Mitnick. Managed to get enrolled in a clinical trial using immunotherapy for his precise diagnosis. Timing wise, a few weeks either way and he'd be dead. Dumb luck.
I can give a few more examples. (And 100s of counter examples.)
Do patients beat cancer?
Of course not. Among the survivors I know, disease (like cancer) is part of life and you deal with it. Or not.
But, some times, if we're really stubborn, and have sufficient resources and support and dumb luck, we can do things to live a little bit longer.
> that did not "Fight hard enough"
Sometimes the patient, family, and especially the care providers don't fight hard enough. For all sorts of reasons. Probably because awareness of mortality made humans neurotic and we're all just winging it. Probably because everything is russian dolls of triage.
Any way, it's just a metaphor. Chose the one that works for you.
Just like I refuse to victim blame/shame, I'm not going to judge another person's coping mechanisms.