a couple thoughts on doctoring

Learning about genetics is a real eye opener. We barely finished sequencing the human genome within the past couple years and already there are new treatments flying out all over the place as a direct result of that project. We are just beginning to knock on the door of human disease as it relates to our human blueprint. As we decipher the raw data we are made of, we are learning at an accelerated rate what makes us tick, and what messes up our clockwork. We are finding mutations every day that cause normal Mendelian diseases (remember the green and yellow peas?) like sickle cell anemia and cystic fibrosis, not to mention the multifactorial diseases that involve a vast array of genes interacting with each other. As we find the root defect in these diseases, we are also finding ways to correct the problems.

Since being in medicine, I am convinced that gene therapy is the way of the future. I don't know what this will mean for mankind, but at the strides we are making in everyday diseases, I fully believe that in my lifetime I will see gene therapy moving to the front of the disease treatment line. It is a good time to be in the medical field, to be a part of the vast improvements in medical care that we will see. Of course when America adopts socialized medicine and we get rid of "evil profits," I imagine that the current rate of discovery and innovation will slow down, but that is another topic altogether.

Other thoughts on doctoring: Today, after visiting with a patient in the hospital (I'll call him Harry) I realized that I have no desire for general practice medicine. I don't think I am cut out for living my life in a constant struggle to fix people's lives. One of the problems with western medicine is a tendency to treat symptoms instead of disease, but when the vast majority of disease are not curable, what else can you do? I want to go into a specialty where I can fix things. Many people have things that are broken and I want to help them live better lives by taking care of that which I have control over. This is why I think I would like opthalmology, orthopedics, or some other type of surgery.

I don't see myself working with people on a day to day basis trying to bring about behavior change. I can't see myself working with diabetics, for example, trying constantly to bring their blood sugar under control in order to tame their heart disease, blood clots, and kidney failure. I'd rather fix broken bones, reconstruct noses, or fix eyes that aren't working.