Posted on 08/16/2006 8:08:37 AM PDT by presidio9
A 16-year-old cancer patient 's legal fight ended in victory Wednesday when his family's attorneys and social services officials reached an agreement that would allow him to forgo chemotherapy.
At the start of what was scheduled to be a two-day hearing, Accomack County Circuit Judge Glen A. Tyler announced that both sides had reached a consent decree, which Tyler approved.
Under the decree, Starchild Abraham Cherrix, who is battling Hodgkin's disease, will be treated by an oncologist of his choice who is board-certified in radiation therapy and interested in alternative treatments. The family must provide the court updates on Abraham's treatment and condition every three months until he's cured or turns 18.
Tyler emphasized that the decree states that the parents weren't medically neglectful.
Abraham saw the doctor last week, and defense attorneys told the judge that the doctor has indicated that he thinks that Abraham can be cured.
After the short hearing, the judge looked at Abraham and said, "God bless you, Mr. Cherrix."
Last summer, the teen was diagnosed with Hodgkin's disease, a cancer of the lymphatic system considered very treatable in its early stages. He was so debilitated by three months of chemotherapy that he declined a second, more intensive round that doctors recommended early this year.
He since has been using an alternative herbal treatment called the Hoxsey method, the sale of which was banned in the United States in 1960.
After Abraham chose to go on the sugar-free, organic diet and take liquid herbal supplements under the supervision of a Mexican clinic, a social worker asked a juvenile court judge to intervene to protect the teen's health. Last month, the judge found Abraham's parents neglectful and ordered Abraham to report to a hospital for treatment as doctors deem necessary.
Lawyers for the family appealed, and an Accomack County Circuit Court judge suspended that order and scheduled a new trial to settle the dispute. The judge scheduled the trial for two days but has indicated he would like to finish in one, said John Stepanovich, a lawyer for the parents.
Abraham is still on the Hoxsey method, but Stepanovich stressed that the family hasn't ruled out other possible treatments, such as immunotherapy or radiation treatment in small doses.
According to the American Cancer Society, there is no scientific evidence that Hoxsey is effective in treating cancer in people. The herbal treatment is illegal in the United States but can be obtained through clinics in Mexico, and some U.S. naturopathic practitioners use adapted versions of the formula.
You aren't the kid and the state has no role in it.
It is to be a personal decision. Would I choose Chemo if the success rate was 80%+, sure.
This is his second time. Given my fictitious numbers, I guess he was in the 20% the first time? If the first drug didn't work, and I presume they used the best coctail against it-- the second best coctail might do less. It could do more...
That's why it's a hard decision. The state can bugger off.
The government had no business intervening in this situation to begin with.
Please read my comments regarding social workers in Accomack County at post #15.
Wow, wax philosophical, wouldja? That was pure honey-drippin' to read, I tell ya. I bet you and I would have the same interpretations of the metaphor and allegory in The Matrix...
Not to go off on a tangent, but this issue kind of points out something that I think a lot of people don't consider. There is a perception among many, subconscious most of the time, that equates the law with morality. That was more true in times past than it is now. Just because the law says something illegal, doesn't mean it's immoral and just because the law says something is legal doesn't make it moral by any stretch of the imagination.
I like what Zon has said more or less in this vein. I would argue that laws were created to rein in on those who lack some of the finer aspects of morality. Theivery comes to mind.
People don't realize that Ritalin prescribed = enhanced funding for reclassing the child as special ed. It's a racket.
They're doing it to my step-grandson. I wish they would listen to me. There were posts here last week about it, that [female] teachers can't handle normal little boys.
The standing joke is quick operate before the patient gets better. YOUR health is the last thing they are concerned about. They've gone to the opposite extreme from what the father of medicine stated.
_________
Hey, I've got an idea, let's paint all medical professionals with the same, incredibly, negative brush.
Damn, you beat me to it!
I can't argue with you there. My hubs was raised in parochial school, all male. He therefore learned sports and history and all things male, leaving him plenty of time to get gaga over chickie-booms at a later and more appropriate time. No need to play doctor before old enough to know the risks!
Parasitical elites in academia, politics and mainstream media have manipulated persons to acknowledge external authority as higher than their own individual authority. They have severely skewed the risk/reward nature of the conscious individual to serve the parasitical elites. Doing that at the cost of individual life, liberty, happiness and prosperity of the individual.
The irony is, in the end, the parasitical elites are the biggest losers. They may have unearned prestige/glory and fortune, but they have no integrity. Whereas the value creator/producer has earned his and her power and rewards via their integrity.
If you really want to be outraged, work in a nursing home :(
Sure...it might. Everyone certainly hopes it does.
There are many examples of how the "alternative treatment" could be superior.
If you have any stats on the success of the Hoxley treatments or of this "alternative treatment" oncologist (or his methods), I'd appreciate the link or source.
I was a chubby kid, but we had exercise, together with boys in grade school. Kickball, softball, Red Rover. It was a great equalizer. I was blessed with good timing and was thus a very good kickball player, giving me some popularity despite my chubbyness.
We're not in disagreement on that point.
My point (opinion) has only been that the choice he and his parents have made bucks the odds and most likely will result in the kid's early demise.
Even so, can it be their reasoning they would prefer a shorter time with better quality vs longer time with nausea and feeling as though he wished it would end already?
I think it's pretty obvious that IS their reasoning since that's what they are doing.
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