Draeger's recent posts with regards to him fighting his condition really open your eyes to some harsh realities. The first is that despite all of our progress, medicine can still be a bit of a dark art. We don't have all of the answers, and we're still not indestructible. If you're in your 30's or 40's, you may have grown up supposing that things would be like Star Trek, and we could just put people in those little machines that fix your innards. We're not there yet.
Which is not to say that I'm not optimistic. Every day there's a new story about some promising direction. Just today I saw a story on how Accutane, the acne drug, can be used to supplement cancer treatment. How odd is that?
I think that the bigger problem is that the whole insurance system is such an epic failure, since not everyone has it or can afford it. And a grand a night just for a hospital room? (When the food is terrible? ;)) I can't even wrap my head around that. It'll be interesting to see how the issue of medical expenses figures into this presidential debate.
I'm on Accutane and it has been a miracle drug. I never had terrible acne, but it was persistent, along with oily skin. All that has been rectified with few side effects.
The medicine is nasty in some ways and you need to be careful while on it, but it doesn't deserve the terrible reputation it has.
Just so I'm clear (no pun intended), I was on Accutane as well, and if you're a male, then there aren't a whole lot of issues, provided you're not having sex.
The same is true for females, but if somehow a female would get pregnant with Accutane present, there could be serious problems.
That said, it did work to clear up acne on my chest and back. I never had acne on my face. I still have scarring present from the acne, but that's not surprising.
As far as I know, there are no rules for having sex while on Accutane as a male. The only risk in terms of pregnancy is having sex as a female, which is why regardless of your social life, you must be on a form of birth control as a female.
This is what was told to me by my doctor, anyway.
Regardless, it is surprising and nice to hear this drug is being used for other means.
The second part I do remember hearing, now that I think about it. The first, nope, and I think I read my version somewhere too. Funny.