Question:

"Pauline" <jdrin…@ctaz.com

writes: herbicides and pesticides [...] Unless your produce is organically grown, you may have to soak your produce once home from the store in one gallon of water + 1 teaspoon of bleach.  Soak for 20 minutes, and scrub gently than rinse well. This helps remove much of the residue.

This is urban legend.  It will kill micro-organisms but do *nothing* to remove pesticides.  Bleach, in the concentrations you’re talking about, is also at least as toxic as any pesticide, and will react with natural substances in your food to produce god only knows what by-products.  And chlorine is a very common allergen, a far more likely cause of allergy than any pesticide. About the only role I can see for this is if you’ve got uncontrolled AIDS and have to make damn sure every possible pathogen in your food is eliminated. No way in hell would I want to eat *anything* that had been contaminated with bleach.  If you’re doing this, warn your friends so they can eat elsewhere.  Some people could get acute asthma or violent allergic diarrhoea from your method of food preparation. ========

Email to "jc" at this site; email to "bogus" will bounce. <========

Jack Campin: 11 Third Street, Newtongrange, Midlothian EH22 4PU; 0131 6604760 http://www.purr.demon.co.uk/purrhome.html  food intolerance data and recipes, freeware logic fonts for the Macintosh, and Scots traditional music resources

Response:

I use Basic-H soak for 10-15 minutes then rinse. No chemicals no problem. Even organically grown foods have no way of controlling the air pollutants, or soil pollutants and using manure for fertilizer has the antibiotics and other meds given to the animal present. The only way they get away with calling it organically grown is because of omission since they did not add this to the air or soil. — Terri,   Professional consultant for optimal health http://shaklee.net/hojaboom_enterprises "Pauline" <jdrin…@ctaz.com

wrote in message

news:siRE4.164$S14.33347@news-west.eli.net… – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text -

I have learned through much reading and research just how much our agricultural products are sprayed with highly toxic chemical, coming from herbicides and pesticides.  Even when we lived by field that were sprayed,

I

had severe allergies and light-headedness,  since we have moved away from this years ago.  Unless your produce is organically grown, you may have to soak your produce once home from the store in one gallon of water + 1 teaspoon of bleach.  Soak for 20 minutes, and scrub gently than rinse

well.

This helps remove much of the residue.  I can’t afford to buy produce from an organic or healthfood store, so I use this method.  (Heard a leading naturopathic M.D. mention this)  ANyone else have a method of cleaning produce?  Pauline

Response:

Question:

Yes. – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text -stevo wrote in message <7pdqpn$4m…@news7.svr.pol.co.uk

… Thanks i will try that, does that mean every dairy product such as milk cheese egg yohgurt etc. bogus address <bo…@purr.demon.co.uk wrote in message news:4908@purr.demon.co.uk… "stevo" <sruff…@pgaero.co.uk writes: i think i may have some sort of dust allergy that i have had since a child.  my throat feels like it is partially blocked with flem and sometimes you can cough it up. More likely to be a dairy allergy than a dust one – typically dust (i.e. mite) allergy causes skin reactions or much more violent respiratory stuff (acute asthma).  Try staying off all dairy products (NO exceptions) for a couple of weeks and see what happens. does anyone have any info or effective methods of reducing nad clearing such as aromatherapy etc. For dust mite allergy, you don’t treat yourself, you treat your environment.  See Des Whitrow’s book "House Dust Mites". Aromatherapy is never the least bit of help for people with food allergies and for some folks it can be hazardous to the point of causing death in minutes.  Pollen allergies can be that bad, and aromatherapy oils are a good way to get a colossal hit of flower allergens. — email to "jc" at this site: email to "jack"  or "bogus" will bounce <— Jack Campin: 11 Third Street, Newtongrange, Midlothian EH22 4PU; 0131 6604760 http://www.purr.demon.co.uk/purrhome.html  food intolerance data and recipes, freeware logic fonts for the Macintosh, and Scots traditional music resources

Response:

i think i may have some sort of dust allergy that i have had since a child. my throat feels like it is partially blocked with flem and sometimes you can cough it up. it is not major but sometimes is anoying. does anyone have any info or effective methods of reducing nad clearing such as aromatherapy etc.

Response:

"stevo" <sruff…@pgaero.co.uk

writes: bogus address <bo…@purr.demon.co.uk wrote: "stevo" <sruff…@pgaero.co.uk writes: i think i may have some sort of dust allergy that i have had since a child.  my throat feels like it is partially blocked with flem and sometimes you can cough it up. More likely to be a dairy allergy than a dust one – typically dust (i.e. mite) allergy causes skin reactions or much more violent respiratory stuff (acute asthma).  Try staying off all dairy products (NO exceptions) for a couple of weeks and see what happens. Thanks i will try that, does that mean every dairy product such as milk cheese egg yohgurt etc.

Yep.  Except that it’s only cow eggs you have to worry about; similarly, chicken milk should be fine… Dairy product here means anything made of what came out of a cow’s udder and nothing more than that. —

email to "jc" at this site: email to "jack"  or "bogus" will bounce <—

Jack Campin: 11 Third Street, Newtongrange, Midlothian EH22 4PU; 0131 6604760 http://www.purr.demon.co.uk/purrhome.html  food intolerance data and recipes, freeware logic fonts for the Macintosh, and Scots traditional music resources

Response:

Thanks i will try that, does that mean every dairy product such as milk cheese egg yohgurt etc. bogus address <bo…@purr.demon.co.uk

wrote in message

news:4908@purr.demon.co.uk… – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text -

"stevo" <sruff…@pgaero.co.uk writes: i think i may have some sort of dust allergy that i have had since a child.  my throat feels like it is partially blocked with flem and sometimes you can cough it up. More likely to be a dairy allergy than a dust one – typically dust (i.e. mite) allergy causes skin reactions or much more violent respiratory stuff (acute asthma).  Try staying off all dairy products (NO exceptions) for a couple of weeks and see what happens. does anyone have any info or effective methods of reducing nad clearing such as aromatherapy etc. For dust mite allergy, you don’t treat yourself, you treat your environment.  See Des Whitrow’s book "House Dust Mites". Aromatherapy is never the least bit of help for people with food allergies and for some folks it can be hazardous to the point of causing death in minutes.  Pollen allergies can be that bad, and aromatherapy oils are a good way to get a colossal hit of flower allergens. — email to "jc" at this site: email to "jack"  or "bogus" will bounce

<—

Jack Campin: 11 Third Street, Newtongrange, Midlothian EH22 4PU; 0131

6604760

http://www.purr.demon.co.uk/purrhome.html  food intolerance data and

recipes,

freeware logic fonts for the Macintosh, and Scots traditional music

resources

Response:

"stevo" <sruff…@pgaero.co.uk

writes: i think i may have some sort of dust allergy that i have had since a child.  my throat feels like it is partially blocked with flem and sometimes you can cough it up.

More likely to be a dairy allergy than a dust one – typically dust (i.e. mite) allergy causes skin reactions or much more violent respiratory stuff (acute asthma).  Try staying off all dairy products (NO exceptions) for a couple of weeks and see what happens.

does anyone have any info or effective methods of reducing nad clearing such as aromatherapy etc.

For dust mite allergy, you don’t treat yourself, you treat your environment.  See Des Whitrow’s book "House Dust Mites". Aromatherapy is never the least bit of help for people with food allergies and for some folks it can be hazardous to the point of causing death in minutes.  Pollen allergies can be that bad, and aromatherapy oils are a good way to get a colossal hit of flower allergens. —

email to "jc" at this site: email to "jack"  or "bogus" will bounce <—

Jack Campin: 11 Third Street, Newtongrange, Midlothian EH22 4PU; 0131 6604760 http://www.purr.demon.co.uk/purrhome.html  food intolerance data and recipes, freeware logic fonts for the Macintosh, and Scots traditional music resources

Response:

In article <7peo60$hb…@bgtnsc01.worldnet.att.net

, "…….Afool……."

<mias…@worldnet.att.net

wrote: Yes. stevo wrote in message <7pdqpn$4m…@news7.svr.pol.co.uk… Thanks i will try that, does that mean every dairy product such as milk cheese egg yohgurt etc.

No. It might be that you are allergic to both milk and eggs, but eggs are not a milk product (obviously). This is one of the problems with referring to milk allergy as "dairy" – eggs are usually kept in the same grocery store area as milk, and you can see by the question (and the answer) what confusion can arise. — Larry Preuss Ann Arbor, MI USA

Response:

Question:

Truly!, what a bunch of wet assed faggots you all are –

IKYABWAI? I take it you are an expert on "wet assed faggots"? Er, …never mind – I don’t need that particular mental snapshot bouncing around in my head… we read your snivelling messages in Auntie Claudias Bunker – and we even got in there!

Gosh, so THAT’S what all that panting and banging was in the hall closet! My hell, it got so raucous they put a chair up under the doorknob; they thought there were a couple of rabid alpha-male chimps in there fornicating. Good show, Pip – MY, aren’t YOU the randy one! It took just 2 people to rout you like startled sparrows! – you really should be ashamed.

Ashamed that they spanked your ass out of ASD so quickly, or ashamed that it took them 24 hours to get their shit together? My God, you had all the lasting power of a snowflake in the Sahara. Hell, they still reverently refer to you as "Senor Flaccido" in ASD… All this endless twittering about this and that diet doesn’t seem to make you robust debaters – most groups would have turned on us in Fury!

Wow, imagine that – a support group ignoring a couple of third-rate trolls (I’m being generous here) and blindly continuing to engage in on-topic conversations! Gads, I guess that doesn’t say much for your highly-touted "debating" skills. That’s ok, Pip – *I* still think you are a master-debater… *innocent look* , but you weedlings bolted for the hills and came back bragging about ‘killfiles’ – some ‘killfiles’! when I’m still writing this!.

Ummm, Spanky? Killfiles don’t keep someone from being able to post; they keep OTHERS from being able to SEE a killfiled person’s posts. I know that is hard for a person of your limited mental prowess to comprehend, but do try. If it were anyone else who made such a stupid statement, I would say that they were trying to troll up some excitement, but this is YOU we are talking about, after all. For goodness sake stand up for yourselves – if you lot are the future of the Free World then we are Doomed!.

…as opposed to Pip, who continues to demonstrate that he is a beacon of enlightenment in a benighted world. How would you like to have HIM in the chain of command for one of the nuclear super-powers? Phil

Indubitably. Go lay down before you hurt yourself…

Response:

Truly!, what a bunch of wet assed faggots you all are – we read your snivelling messages in Auntie Claudias Bunker – and we even got in there! It took just 2 people to rout you like startled sparrows! – you really should be ashamed.  All this endless twittering about this and that diet doesn’t seem to make you robust debaters – most groups would have turned on us in Fury!, but you weedlings bolted for the hills and came back bragging about ‘killfiles’ – some ‘killfiles’! when I’m still writing this!. For goodness sake stand up for yourselves – if you lot are the future of the Free World then we are Doomed!. Phil

Response:

Oh dear  Self Appointed Troll Catcher, you just haven’t got the knack of humour (correct spelling!) have you?

"Humour"? "HUMOUR"? OH – you mean "humor"! God, you fuckin’ Brits are warped, wasting perfectly good letters just to make words longer so you can pad the writings of your British authors and make their works appear more substantive than they really are. I guess what the Brits lack in substance, they make up for in volume, eh? I see you included your obligatory "Pip’s Spelling fLame"(tm); bully for you. It’s good to know some things are constant in the universe; I guess you gotta go with what works for you (or in your case, "The ONLY thing that works for…"  …er, "The ONLY thing that didn’t work but you continue to try…"; well, something along those lines…). Your style is so leaden, so lacking in deftness -and, inarguably,  without even the faintest gleam of wit!.

This coming from the feeb whose idea of a Good Flame was:   "Now sod off and grow some fucking lettuce or something!" Yes, THAT l’il gem had EVERYONE rolling for hours, MasterDebater Pip. You reduce everything to a surly growl

No, that’s just the sound of agony that your stomach makes when you helplessly watch me show the world what a pathetic, unimaginative scrod you really are. which becomes rather tedious after a while.  I’m afraid

Yes, that’s right, Pip – be very, VERY afraid… that, without question, I can write you into the floor – so to speak!. Could this be the root cause of your obvious resentment?

RESENTMENT? *BAH-HAHAHAHAHAHA!* Pip, you lowly little boot-licker, I don’t resent you! I admire you in the way a master takes pride in his favorite bitch! A bitch breeds pups, and you breed entertainment! It isn’t just ANYONE who can continually get the shit kicked out of them in as many different newsgroups as you have and keep coming back for more. Remember, Pip – you are *MY* bitch, now. ALWAYS keep that in mind. Read some of my altflamenigger posting to see how it should be done!. Yours rather proudly,  Phil

And be laughed at the same way you are? Not bloody likely, pal. Don’t be too proud, Stumpy. Most men are better hung after getting out of a 7

Question:

Does anyone the stats on how spacer devised perform as opposed to normal inhalers without spacers?

According to the ‘Asthma Sourcebook’, Francis Adams, MD, "70% of the medication discharged on activation of an MDI is deposited in the mouth & throat and never reaches the bronchial tubes. Approximately 15% remains in the mouthpiece of the MDI and 10-25% actually reaches the bronchial airways. Spacers……Even the simplest device has been shown to reduce by half the a mouthpiece and one-way valve that can also signal if the patient is inhaling too fast. It is also available with a facemask for small children and adults……. By reducing the amount lost in the mouth, spacers reduce total body absorption and therefore reduce possible total body side effects. With the B-agonists, this may mean reduced nervousness or shakiness after use. This benefit may be advantagious in high doses of inhaled corticosteroids, reducing the chances of steroid side effects on the whole body. Spacers have also been shown to reduce the risk of yeast infection (candidiasis) that may occur with the inhaled corticosteroids." The new steroid inhaler Pulmicort Turbuhaler, coming out in early ‘98 in the US, is a DPI which is more efficient than an MDI; also it does not use a spacer. There is more info in the Expert Panel Report 2 (see last link below) Table 3-3 Aerosol Delivery Devices MDI–open mouth technique (holding MDI 2 inches away from open mouth) enhances delivery to the lung. However, it has not consistently been shown to enhance clinical benefit compared to closed-mouth technique (closing lips around MDI mouthpiece). Therapeutic issues–deposition of 80% of actuated dose in oropharynx. Some links: http://home.earthlink.net/~francisva/news.html The Asthma Sourcebook News http://www.ama-assn.org/sci-pubs/journals/archive/ajdc/vol_151/no_9/o…      Metered-Dose Inhaler Accessory Devices in Acute Asthma http://www.njc.org/MFhtml/AER_MF.html Using an Aerochamber

Question:

You may want to check the National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health’s (NIOSH) web site (www.niosh.gov) for info on latex allergies. There has been a lot of information published on latex alleries in the last few years due to the increased awareness of bloodborne pathagens. Healthcare workers have developed sensitization reactions to latex gloves and allergic reactions to latex condoms are becoming more common.  I do not see why the natural latex in gloves and condoms would be any different from a dry suit’s latex seals. glen

The rash is from peeing in the suit.   –I.P. Daly

Response:

Is anybody out there who has personal experiences with –  or has heard something about allergic reactions caused by paddling clothe=

s, especially by neoprene and/or latex(-gaskets)? A female paddling buddy of mine got a kind of nettle rash about 5 weeks ago. The rash moves constantly all over her body. One day i=

t occurres at the neck, the next day at an arm and so on. The docs said it could be an allergic reaction, but none of their medicine=  (anti allergic) had an effect. I don`t think it is caused by her paddling clothes, because the symptoms first occurred nearly two weeks after the last usage of he=

r equipment. Even the following two weeks she didn`t use her equipment. Nevertheless the nettle rash remained. Last weekend she used=  her paddling clothes for the first time again, with no positiv or negativ effect on the rash. The problem with these damned allergic reaktions is, that you have to exclude all possible reasons, even if they are unlikely.  Wha=

t do you think, can it be caused by her neoprene-wetsuit or by the latex gaskets of her paddling jacket? Or had someone the same pro= blems? Holger Schmidt, Radevormwald, Germany

Recently I have seen (on TV) several stories about allergic reactions to latex. These stories are usually centered around hospital workers since latex is one of the most used materials in medical equipment.  Like most allergies, this one is about becoming overly sensitive to the material. Sorry, I don’t have more info, but I suggest making a post in one of medically oriented newsgroups. They may know more about this problem and how to determine if this is what is going on with your girlfriend. Michael L. Roberts

Response:

You may want to check the National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health’s (NIOSH) web site (www.niosh.gov) for info on latex allergies. There has been a lot of information published on latex alleries in the last few years due to the increased awareness of bloodborne pathagens. Healthcare workers have developed sensitization reactions to latex gloves and allergic reactions to latex condoms are becoming more common.  I do not see why the natural latex in gloves and condoms would be any different from a dry suit’s latex seals. glen

Response:

Holger Schmidt, Radevormwald, Germany (snip)

My understanding of the typical latex allergy would occur within the first hour and not last more than a few hours.  However the reaction can be severe, including an acute asthma like reaction.  the time sequence you gave makes this an unlikely source. Brian

Response:

I have experienced exacly the same reaction to neoprene positioned against bare skin. (ie. a red rash forming) Warren W.

Response:

Is anybody out there who has personal experiences with –  or has heard something about allergic reactions caused by paddling clothes, especially by neoprene and/or latex(-gaskets)? A female paddling buddy of mine got a kind of nettle rash about 5 weeks ago. The rash moves constantly all over her body. One day it occurres at the neck, the next day at an arm and so on. The docs said it could be an allergic reaction, but none of their medicine (anti allergic) had an effect. I don`t think it is caused by her paddling clothes, because the symptoms first occurred nearly two weeks after the last usage of her equipment. Even the following two weeks she didn`t use her equipment. Nevertheless the nettle rash remained. Last weekend she used her paddling clothes for the first time again, with no positiv or negativ effect on the rash. The problem with these damned allergic reaktions is, that you have to exclude all possible reasons, even if they are unlikely.  What do you think, can it be caused by her neoprene-wetsuit or by the latex gaskets of her paddling jacket? Or had someone the same problems? Holger Schmidt, Radevormwald, Germany

Holger – I haven’t encountered any boaters with that problem, but just this week on one of the news magazine TV shows there was a story about latex allergies. Apparently with the increased use of latex gloves in medical/dental treatment, more cases are starting to show up and its now being recognized.  There were a few folks on the show who had advanced cases and were seriously disabled by it.  They said only a small percentage of the population is allergic, but for them, it gets worse with increased exposure and can be exacerbated by eating bananas, strawberries or other allergic foods. Hope this helps. Steve —                     o

Response:

Is anybody out there who has personal experiences with –  or has heard something about allergic reactions caused by paddling clothes, especially by neoprene and/or latex(-gaskets)? A female paddling buddy of mine got a kind of nettle rash about 5 weeks ago. The rash moves constantly all over her body. One day it occurres at the neck, the next day at an arm and so on. The docs said it could be an allergic reaction, but none of their medicine (anti allergic) had an effect. I don`t think it is caused by her paddling clothes, because the symptoms first occurred nearly two weeks after the last usage of her equipment. Even the following two weeks she didn`t use her equipment. Nevertheless the nettle rash remained. Last weekend she used her paddling clothes for the first time again, with no positiv or negativ effect on the rash. The problem with these damned allergic reaktions is, that you have to exclude all possible reasons, even if they are unlikely.  What do you think, can it be caused by her neoprene-wetsuit or by the latex gaskets of her paddling jacket? Or had someone the same problems? Holger Schmidt, Radevormwald, Germany

Response:

Question:

AIDS poster chimp Jeff Getty, whose failed baboon bone marrow transplant was a pricey, sci-fi embarrassment for AIDS research and San Francisco, muses about baboons, protease inhibitors, radiation and asthma.

Let’s see, first Getty was the "Human Growth Hormone" Poster boy and then a year later, the Ape-Boy of Alcatraz! Getty clearly suffers from a sense of entitlement and an overpowering narcissistic fixation to be on television, even if that requires a mother-sister act before the televised FDA committee on xenotransplantation … or for Jeff to eat a banana on TV. Unlike an ape, however, there is nothing Getty will NOT do to get attention. While Munchausen’s Syndrome comes immediately to mind, I recall Getty promising to not have sex after his marrow transplant, as a promise to contain any ape viruses that haven’t made it into the human species yet. Since HIV can take 10-20 years to be symptomatic, and given the length of time needed to discover HIV, it is likely that Getty is now harboring viruses that either are pathogenic to humans or can become pathogenic given time or genetic variability. We simply don’t have any way to know, but the possibility outweighs his right to privacy in this critical matter. Thus we must be asking Getty one question and one question only: Has Jeff Getty remained celibate since the transplant and will Jeff Getty remain celibate for the rest of his life for the protection of our species and future generations? If the answer is "no", he must be quarantined immediately. If "yes" is his answer (total celibacy), someone must take responsibility to assure he will comply. There simply is too much at stake to take any risk with Jeff, because given his past behavior, he should be considered to be "Patient Zero" of a future epidemic — that is, once he discovers that this is his ticket to his next TV show. fred

Response:

AIDS poster chimp Jeff Getty, whose failed baboon bone marrow transplant was a pricey, sci-fi embarrassment for AIDS research and San Francisco, muses about baboons, protease inhibitors, radiation and asthma. For him, protease inhibitors were a disaster but that hasn’t deterred him from getting the pills down the throats of others who are in a similar viral predicament. He himself has moved on to microwaving his lymph system through directly immunosuppressive radiation therapy. Give that ape a banana for the two most comical AIDS media quotes of 1996! "All I know is that I got up from that (radiation) table, and I could breathe again," he said. and "I’m lining myself up to do a zap in January or February. There’s a lot of asthma forming in my lungs. Radiation is a good way to stop inflammation." With statements like that it’s obvious that goofy photo-ops, not an AIDS cure, are what’s number one in this cowardly Neanderthal’s mind. Dave Pasquarelli ACT UP San Francisco San Francisco Chronicle December 14, 1996 Page A15 (Note: the story is accompanied with a photo of a pallid Getty at the breakfast table clutching his head like he’s about to puke into his bowl of Cheerios.) Baboon marrow recipient thrives A year after operation, he feels better than ever. By Dan Levy, Chronicle staff writer One year ago today, AIDS activist Jeff Getty entered an operating room at San Francisco General Hospital not knowing whether he would come out alive. In a history-making procedure that focused attention on experimental AIDS therapies and the issue of animal testing, doctors were preparing to kill Getty’s HIV-infected bone marrow with massive doses of radiation — and then replace it with AIDS- resistant marrow from a baboon. Even in the sometimes unorthodox realm of AIDS research, it was a breathtaking development. Nobody knew how the baboon cells would affect Getty’s body, or if some simian disease might attack his already-compromised system. But against the expectations of many medical professionals, he survived the operation. Since then, Getty has put on 20 pounds, worked out regularly and has taken up sailing again. He was virtually free of disease for 10 months, although in October, he had a bout of chronic asthma. In jeans and a sweater, with a neat haircut parted on the side, he looks like a preppy ex-college jock. "It’s the best year I’ve had in five years," said Getty, 39, the other day in his Oakland loft. It had already been a hectic afternoon. An ABC News crew was finished filming, ABC and MS- NBC were calling in and NPR wanted him for the following morning. Even a reporter from his hometown of Waterford, Conn., was anxious to know how the man who got the baboon infusion was doing one year later. Like a seasoned media manipulator, Getty welcomed the attention. His years as an activist taught him how to play the publicity game. With ACT UP Golden Gate, Getty was a self described "cattle prod" trying to move the FDA and pharmaceutical companies toward more compassionate and less profit-driven policy on AIDS research. His latest push is for access to affordable protease inhibitors, the therapies that have been shown to reduce the HIV viral load to zero in some recently infected people, although Get believes the drugs have not helped him. He contends that protease inhibitors, which work best in HIV-infected people whose immune systems are relatively strong, do not help him. He had been taking the drugs for three months before the operation. "I was thinking that 1997 would be remembered as the year we beat the epidemic," Getty said. "Now I think it will be remembered as the year of no access for some people with AIDS, while drug companies reaped maximum profit and AIDS-industry management gave itself more raises." Getty’s aggressive personal style has been controversial in the close-knit Bay Area community. He has also become a lightning rod of criticism for some animal-rights activists. But his bravery and devotion to the search for a cure is seldom questioned. "I think Jeff has really moved the agenda forward," said Tad Tobias of AIDS treatment News in San Francisco. "I have tremendous respect for him. He’s been willing to put his life on the line for our community." Getty was estimated to have less than six months to live when he approached the baboon-marrow research team at the University of Pittsburgh. "He’d heard about the protocol and read everything in print about it," said Dr. Suzanne Ildstad, head of the team, now at Allegheny University in Philadelphia. "Then he asked for readings not in print. Finally he said he wanted to be our first patient." A simian-to-human bone marrow transplant had never been tried before. Some doctors believed that if the alien marrow didn’t kill him, the huge dosage of radiation before the 37-minute transfusion would. But so far those fears haven’t come to pass. The baboon cells vanished from his body two weeks after the operation and he has had no signs of baboon-related illness. His doctors monitor his condition often, but they still aren’t sure how to explain Getty’s apparent good health. "There were people who predicted that the radiation would kill Jeff, and it may have had the opposite effect," said Ildstad. Getty himself believes that is what precisely happened. "All I know is that I got up from that (radiation) table, and I could breathe again," he said. Before the operation, acute asthma was the illness that caused Getty the most misery. It appears to be returning. He would like to participate in a radiation protocol about to be finalized by doctors at the Gladstone Institute at UCSF. "I’m lining myself up to do a zap in January or February. There’s a lot of asthma forming in my lungs. Radiation is a good way to stop inflammation." Getty knows that despite his run of good health he is in an extremely precarious position. His T-cell count — a measure of the strength of his immune system is 36, compared to a count of between 800 and 1,000 for an uninfected person. The shelves in his bathroom hold dozens of brown plastic pill bottles, the medicine cabinet is filled with pain relievers, and there are boxes of syringes piled on the floor. It makes for a moment of subdued reflection, even for the firebrand activist. "I have no regrets," he said. "When you’re facing death you have to take drastic action." Nature Medicine, Vol. 2, Number 1 January 1996, pp. 18-21 Xenotransplantation at a crossroads: Prevention versus progress The infectious disease risks associated with baboon-to-human transplants may represent an insurmountable hurdle in the race to save lives. Yet, public health agencies are reluctant to regulate xenotransplantation in spite of those risks. By Jonathan S. Allan Two public meetings were recently held to address the scientific, ethical and the infectious disease issues involved in the practice of cross-species transplantation to treat human disease (see Nature Medicine 1, 728; 1995). Beyond this, a joint committee of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has now wrestled with the unenviable task of formulating and publishing guidelines that address the public health safety risks surrounding cross-species transplantation in humans. A provisional draft of the guidelines, to be published in the Federal Register (a U.S. government publication of both regulatory and legal notices) represents more than six month’s effort to navigate through a complex problem. Having been a member of the FDA panel at which the guidelines were discussed and having spoken at the both the IOM and FDA meetings about the infectious disease risks associated with baboon transplants, I remain concerned that the proposed guidelines will not significantly reduce the risk of introducing a new human disease through xenotransplantation. There are at least three main avenues that could have been taken in dealing with the infectious disease risks surrounding xenotransplantation. First, all cross-species transplants could have been banned, although a preferable option would have been to permit only pig organ transplants. The decision to proceed with both species means that our federal agencies have decided that the potential medical benefits outweigh the infectious disease risks and that any dangers represent "manageable" risks. Second, having approved these procedures on principle, it seems reasonable to develop federal regulations much the same as those that have been developed by the FDA to oversee gene therapy and other novel therapeutic approaches in humans. One important reason for developing such strict regulations has been to ensure that any preparations such as monoclonal antibody treatments or gene delivery vectors be free of replication- competent retroviruses. (Retroviruses can be a serious problem because of their inherent ability to integrate into human chromosomes with the potential for inducing cancer.) The FDA/CDC working group appears to have instead opted for a third alternative-a series of guidelines to be played out at the local level. Apparently there will be little federal oversight once the transplant community has begun xenotransplantation in earnest. It is also of concern that these guidelines provide few real safeguards against the introduction and spread of new infectious diseases in the human population. Xenotransplantation’s risks The most pressing concern with cross-species transplants is the inherent risk of transmitting animal viruses to humans. Several recent reviews have addressed this risk (1-4). The infectious disease community has been on alert for the appearance of new emerging diseases such as the recent Ebola virus outbreak in Africa, the hantavirus outbreak in the Southwest United States, and the … read more »

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AIDS poster chimp Jeff Getty, whose failed baboon bone marrow transplant was a pricey, sci-fi embarrassment for AIDS research and San Francisco, muses about baboons, protease inhibitors, radiation and asthma. For him, protease inhibitors were a disaster but that hasn

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that a drug that irratates the lungs is administered through a inhaler and it causes you to have a asthma attack. Then they measure the severity of the attack. He will not tell me the name of the drug an I want to research the drug myself in addition to the doctors recommendations.

He doesn’t want to tell you because either 1) he doesn’t know, or 2) he doesn’t want the results biased. If you really want to know – he should tell you – you have a right to the information. — Kathie Sindt

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– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text -Hi Glenn, : Need information on breathing test my doctor told me about. He said : that a drug that irratates the lungs is administered through a inhaler : and it causes you to have a asthma attack. I am wondering if he is talking about a Histamine (sp?) challenge test ? However, you say that it is administered through an inhaler so I am not sure… Colleen ?  Is this correct or am I thinking of another test ? Then they measure the : severity of the attack. He will not tell me the name of the drug an I : want to research the drug myself in addition to the doctors : recommendations. They don’t like to tell pt’s about the meds used during these tests as it may skew the results … Amber

I believe that the test being referred to here is the methacholine challenge test. In some, but not all asthmatics, this chemical acts as a trigger for bronchospasm. In the test I experienced, a nebulizer was used to gradually expose me to more and more concentrated solutions of the irritant while my FEV (forced expiratory volume) was measured. In susceptible individuals, an asthma-like "attack" is induced, with the concentration of the methacholine required representing a measure of the "twitchiness" (my allergist’s words) of the airways. Appropriate treatments for your condition can be suggested by the outcome of this test. You may think that the idea of purposefully inducing asthmatic symptoms is a little frightening, but the concentrations of the irritant chemical are very small, and the reduction in airflow (if it occurs at all) is very gradual. In my case, I was more irritated by the repeated demands to make forced complete exhalations than by the chemical itself. The respiratory technicians doing the test were very considerate of my perceptions, and made me aware that discontinuing the test was an option after each successive trial. Moreover, treatments were at hand should a full-blown attack have occurred. What I learned from this test is that I am unlikely to develop life-threatening respiratory symptoms, so my treatments have focussed on reducing the effects of chronic inflammation in my lungs. Knowing the truth about your status is extremely important. Hope this helps, Larry Hoover

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Need information on breathing test my doctor told me about. He said that a drug that irratates the lungs is administered through a inhaler and it causes you to have a asthma attack. Then they measure the severity of the attack. He will not tell me the name of the drug an I want to research the drug myself in addition to the doctors recommendations.                                                     Thank You!

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Hi Glenn,

: Need information on breathing test my doctor told me about. He said : that a drug that irratates the lungs is administered through a inhaler : and it causes you to have a asthma attack. I am wondering if he is talking about a Histamine (sp?) challenge test ? However, you say that it is administered through an inhaler so I am not sure… Colleen ?  Is this correct or am I thinking of another test ? Then they measure the : severity of the attack. He will not tell me the name of the drug an I : want to research the drug myself in addition to the doctors : recommendations. They don’t like to tell pt’s about the meds used during these tests as it may skew the results … Amber

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Need information on breathing test my doctor told me about. He said that a drug that irratates the lungs is administered through a inhaler and it causes you to have a asthma attack. Then they measure the severity of the attack. He will not tell me the name of the drug an I want to research the drug myself in addition to the doctors recommendations.

Most likely, the 2 possible drugs they would administer are 1) Methacholine  or 2) Histamine Acid Phosphate but my money is highly on the MCH as it is THE drug that can indicate the presence of asthma. You inhale very dilute concentrations of MCH until your pulmonary functions show a decrease by 20%. This is called the PC 20. The higher the dose you have to go, the less irritated your lungs are. So that after the saline challenge, you then start with a very dilute concentration. After 5 breaths of this, they measure your pulmonary functions and if you haven’t yet dropped that 20%, they try the next concentration.  There are about 8-10 concentrations to try. If you get up to the very high levels, i.e. 32 mg/ml and still you haven’t dropped to your PC 20%, then you are much more likely NOT to have asthma. If you drop very quickly at a low concentration, then you might more than likely have asthma. Your doctor needs to interpret these results and correlate them with her clinical findings to arrive at a diagnosis.  Also, when you do drop 20%, your chest will be tight and it is like a real, scary asthma attack. Don’t worry!!  They will give you a bronchodilator to reverse the constriction, they will do follow up pulmonary functions to see that you have returned to your baseline, and they will only let you go when they and you, are assured you are in no danger of acute asthma.  Seen it, done it, been there before. Cheers, Lori Morris

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