Anyone from Pittsburgh surely remembers Mayor Richard Caligiuri. Any anti-abortion, pro-life advocate will remember Governor Bob Casey, also of Pennsylvania. When I read the Washington Times article about Bin Laden's admission to the American Hospital in Dubai for liver problems, this was the very first thought that entered my mind.
If the article and THIS speculation is true, then my evaluation of Bin Laden as a US Stalking Horse gains in credence.
AMYLOIDOSIS
Amyloidosis is a group of diseases which have in common the accumulation of abnormal protein in various organs. It is best known in Pennsylvania as the illness that afflicted Governor Robert Casey and Mayor Richard Caligiuri. The symptoms experienced by patients depend on the type of protein in a particular case and the organs involved.
Rheumatologists first became interested in amyloidosis because it can occur as a result of any chronic inflammatory process, such as rheumatoid arthritis, ankylosing spondylitis, or chronic infections. Only a minority (<1%) of rheumatic disease patients develop this complication, and usually only those whose inflammation is not well controlled. Amyloidosis most often affects the kidneys, resulting in increased amounts of protein in the urine and kidney failure. It may also involve the adrenal glands or intestines. The diagnosis can be made by biopsying the involved organ. A simple way to make the diagnosis is to remove a small amount of fat from under the skin. This type of amyloidosis, called secondary amyloidosis (also called AA amyloid), is treated by suppressing the inflammatory process as aggressively as possible. A trial is under way to test a drug which may dissolve this type of amyloid, hopefully leading to improved organ function.
The most common form of amyloid is AL, or light chain-associated amyloid. This condition results from an abnormal protein produced by cells in the bone marrow called plasma cells. It is a severe form of amyloidosis which can involve almost any organ, but especially the heart, kidney, lung, nerve, and intestine. To destroy the cells that produce the abnormal protein, patients are treated with chemotherapy or bone marrow transplantation.
Familial amyloidosis is the result of accumulation of a protein resulting from the process of mutation. The symptoms of a particular form of familial amyloidosis depends on the ethnic origin of the family involved and even on the individual family involved. One of the common forms (although it is very rare) is found among families of Mediterranean descent. Because the abnormal protein is produced in the liver, this form can be treated with liver transplantation.
##############################################################
Comments???