Medical Survival

John H. Gryfe is an oral and maxillofacial surgeon practicing in
Toronto.

One of the major proponents for the legalization of the use of heroin for the terminally ill and horrifyingly pained cancer victim is a clinically minded gynecologist whose nom de plume is W. Gifford-Jones. His entertainingly readable weekly syndicated newspaper column, “The Doctor Game,” has, I suspect, been edited and reworked to form the basis for this informative but sometimes confusing handbook on prevention and self-diagnosis for the medical consumer. No one will complain about the absence of his favourite symptom complex, and even the most well-read “magazine rack physician” may find something to augment his knowledge. The author’s timely use of humor makes even the most controversial topics palatable without diluting their serious message.

While the book is subdivided into chapters that deal with specific topics, recurrent themes keep popping up. We are continually reminded that “God didn’t create diabetics — we did it ourselves”; and the sequelae of this self-inflicted “sword of destruction” include reduction in the body’s resistance capability, premature aging of arteries, earlier heart attacks, strokes, and kidney failure. Stress is part of life and one should learn to live with it, not be crippled by it. Salt and sugar create disproportionate destruction for the momentary gustatory pleasure they initiate. As he repeatedly points out in acknowledging the sagacity of Walt Kelly’s Pogo, “We have discovered the enemy, and the enemy is us.”

Despite the information disclosed in the first fifteen chapters, I feel the true merit of the book lies in the final section, entitled “Death with Dignity.” The apparently paradoxical decisions of hospital bio-ethics committees are examined because their complex dilemmas are part of the philosophical conundrum that is called euthanasia. In a book that strongly suggests that the layperson using common sense can maintain a healthy and enjoyable lifestyle, it seems eminently appropriate to champion the hospital committee that has the ultimate control over who should be resuscitated or whose terminal affliction should be made a little more tolerable through the use of otherwise illegal medications.

Whether you’re concerned about “Jogger’s Nipple” or you need reassurance that your dentist’s decision to remove your wisdom tooth is valid, the time invested in reading this smoothly styled text will be hours of considerable benefit.