Full of Sound and Fury–Signifying Trouble

^{Article first published as Full of Sound and Fury - Signifying Trouble on Technorati.}

I am not surprised to learn that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration  is investigating the possible link between breast implants and cancer. Such research should have been made, no matter where and by whom, many years ago.

Foxnews.com reported this week that during a 13-year period the FDA has discovered 60 people suffering a “rare cancer known as anaplastic large cell lymphoma.” It attacks lymph nodes and has been found in the scar tissue that surrounds the breast implant.”

The report could well have referred to a beloved family friend who was so desperate to maintain her appearance and feeling of self-worth after a double mastectomy that she insisted on having breast implants.

Her original cancer had been cleared and was in remission but once she had the implants her problems returned with a vengeance.

Immediately after the initial treatment, she was unable to sleep and described pacing her upstairs landing trying to cope with the  intense ‘pressure’ inside her chest.

When I suggested that the treatment may not have agreed with her, she responded hotly that millions of other women had implants without side-effects. Why should she be different?

But then the cancer returned more fiercely than ever and my  final memory of her is seeing her at the  famous Christie Hospital in Manchester, U.K., - desperate for breath - being offered sips of water by her son.

The last vestige of the striking, strong, passionate woman we had known were her exquisitely manicured and polished finger nails, as she clung vainly on to life by her appearance even at the end.

I am convinced more than 10 years later that she would be living  now if she had not insisted on those darned implants.

As anywhere between five and 10 million women worldwide have breast implants, the FDA  now urges doctors to report all cases of the cancer so staff may better understand the association.

The FDA says: "Women should monitor their breast implants and contact their doctor if they notice any changes."

Technorati Tags: Breast Implants,Silicone,Saline,FDA,Lymphoma,Christie Hospital

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Stuffed and Starved in the Age of Ambivalence

Article first published as Stuffed and Starved in the Age of Ambivalence on Technorati.

This week as I read of the deaths of French model, Isabelle Caro and her mother, Marie I recalled my own history of cyclical stuff-and-starve.

Yesterday I learned also of a startling new male model,  Andrej Pejic.  The Bosnian  blond 19-year-old, who has already been booked by  designer Jean Paul Gaultier and two editions of Vogue magazine, looks like an entrancing young woman.

Is this what the fashion industry wants? Not gracious girls, but skeletal androgynous men who won’t bother agency bosses with neuroses like nosh-and-puke diets or premenstrual tension? What a great symbol of our pre-pubescent 21st century as the age of ambivalence!

It was reported that Marie Caro committed suicide through remorse for her daughter’s death following a near life-long  battle with anorexia and the publicity surrounding it.

Further, her husband has claimed negligence by  the hospital where their daughter died from a respiratory infection and intends to sue. His case must be groundless as the hospital will surely argue that Isabelle – who  ironically looked like a Bosnian concentration camp survivor – died from years of self-imposed starvation.

I had a private war with Bulimia Nervosa during my late teens without realising what I suffered. It happened during the very early 70s when I had become enormously fat from using a contraceptive pill to regulate bad periods. The only effect was terrible weight-gain, both from the pill and over-eating, caused by crises at home and school.

Coincidentally, Anorexia Nervosa started to become hot news at that time. Indeed one of my friends – desperate to emulate her prettier, smarter and much thinner sister – enjoyed a few days in hospital after starving herself during a holiday in Israel .

Only much later did I realise that while she had the attention - I had the bulimia - along with the dreadful taunts about my gross appearance. I  won’t describe what I did on my self-destructive binges. Needless to say, I could not tell anyone and – if possible – was filled  more with self-disgust than food. Now I well believe Isabelle felt that a dominant, over-anxious, pushy mother would not allow her to grow up.

Somehow, after a disastrous and wasted few weeks at ‘Weightwatchers’ and about 18 months of ridiculous self-denial, I reduced my weight to normal. Other times of great unhappiness have caused me to feast and fast but I have never again been ‘bulimic’ as I understand the word. However, 40 years later I still eat hugely and  suffer from occasional stomach complaints – all of it the legacy of my secret bulimia.

But anorexics of all stripes inevitably see the fat person in the mirror, no matter their real size. It’s like being an alcoholic or a gambler – with one vital difference. One may vow never again to drink alcohol or place a bet, but one cannot refrain indefinitely  from food – without becoming another mortuary statistic.

I make no apologies for republishing ‘before-and-after’  pictures of Isabelle Caro. May her dreadful, harrowing story be a lesson to all us mere mortals. After all, the gods of the fashion industry are far too busy showing off to care.

 

 

 

 

 

Technorati Tags: Isabelle Caro,Marie Caro,Andrej Pejic,Jean Paul Gaultier,Bosnia,Vogue Magazine.Anorexia,Bulimia

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This Plastic Surgeon Is A Real Envoy For Her People

Dr Rania Elkhatib – the first Israeli Arab woman plastic surgeon

For Dr. Rania Elkhatib, her job at the Rambam Medical Centre, Haifa is a chance to be an emissary for her community. She also embodies the best sort of inter-community relations.

Dr Elkhatib (28), is the first Israeli Arab woman to become a plastic surgeon after studying medicine at the Haifa Technion. She explains she decided to focus on plastic surgery because "... in our community plastic surgery isn't very advanced and it's not well accepted so I feel a bit like an emissary for my community, to go into this field and take it forward.”

The Rambam’s plastic surgeons treat a number of conditions, ranging from burns, war injuries and cleft palates to breast and facial reconstruction for cancer patients.

Thirty per cent of doctors at Rambam are women, and the representation of Arab physicians is proportionate to the numbers in the population.

While the hospital is committed to providing equal opportunities, Prof. Yehuda Ullmann, head of the plastic surgery department, stresses that doctors are chosen purely on merit:

"Plastic surgery residency is the most wanted residency in medicine, not just in Israel but all over the world, and she was elected, not because she's Arab, not because she's a woman, but because she is Dr. Elkhatib and and she is a very good doctor so we are lucky to have her here," he said.

Technorati Tags: Dr Rania Elkhatib,Rambam Medical Centre,Haifa Technion,Haifa,Plastic Surgery,Professor Yehuda Ullmann

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