Code Blue

This debate has ben active for at least 35 years that I can recall. As with a lot of things there is no perfect information: each of the trials has some degree of technical flaw which is then used by those of a contrary viewpoint to trash the whole paper. For the general i.e. low risk population of women, there is no benefit to screening outside the ages 50-70. No-one lives longer or better if screened more often that every two years. Yes, there are anecdotes, narratives of "saves" which carry a weight beyond the numbers but at the population level - and that is what screening is about - they vanish in analysis. For those with a family history and genetic markers things are different: they account for less than 10% of patients with breast cancer - and I can hear the replies now about granny who had it starting up. (If a woman lives long enough she will develop breast cancer, just as a man will do with his prostate. At that time of life it does not shorten our time on earth. ) Initially the downside of screening was XRay exposure, but now it is something much more awkward to manage. Modern techniques of mammography with greater sensitivities have been introduced with limited trials and have multiplied the number of "shadows" needing further, usually surgical intervention. While technology has diminished the magnitude of the invasiveness of these biopsies, nothing has diminished the almost paralytic fear generated in ladies with a "positive" finding. Most (in excess of 70%) of these biopsies are "normal". Few of those classed as not normal are anything other than problems which are managed simply by more mammograms, "just to keep an eye on things". There is even some evidence that the very earliest forms of in situ breast cancer may actually be self limiting and if left would have disappeared as magically as they appeared. That is where the real research is taking place: how to spot them. I am utterly convinced someone would now spend even more words to advance the contrarian view. Just my 2 cents CB

The glass is neither half full, nor half empty: it merely is. How you deal with its contents is what matters. Dark events or days will always be challenging, but a post like that mrnice is one of the lights to brighten those darker times. Thanks CB

My two cents as well. Congratulations !!! and thanks for the insights. CB

It is an issue that ought to be aired, so my main comment is just in support of Megan's thread-starter. Unfortunately, I doubt those who feel coerced would be likely to contribute to such a thread and help enlighten the discussion. Having been told elsewhere I am hopeless at "reading" people, I don't think I have much to add in terms of how to detect "coercion" on the day as it were, other than the comments written already. I do think that a lady's presence here on CERB over time may well be my best insurance to avoid inadvertently collaborating in such exploitation. CB

Out East my bank, TD, said they would not have any here until the first Thursday in December. I tried to get one last week CB

Freud and his slip at work I suspect: "throat" or "thought" :-D CB

It sounds like the best porn is the stuff you bring along inside your head..... CB

I could see how that might happen! :icon_biggrin: CB

I wanted to be a pilot, but at the age of 9 I got a pair of spectacles and that was the end of that then. Twenty five years later, the rules - and country - changed and I got my commercial license, flying for six years. Then my eyes caught up with me once more and now I am relegated to sitting in the back while other guys at the pointy end get to drive. Still, it was great fun and I had a "Plan B" CB

Bacon has been a much maligned breakfast and unjustly so! Bring on the eggs! And fried bread :-D CB

I was beginning to feel a bit like "Deep Throat" from Hitchhiker's Guide! I will now spend another 10,000,000 years working out the right question! Interesting replies though. CB

I hope I wasn't misunderstood: I wasn't complaining, merely seeking enlightenment. I'm still a relative newbie here. The "market" (economic sense) appears to work in a fashion analogous to the volume and margin/price calculations in retail. Revenue = volume x price. Perhaps I asked the wrong question - a failing of mine I have been told. Maybe I should have been interested in the customer view: Is price a good proxy measure for "quality" of company once it is above the "usual range"? CB

Sitting with a cold beer watching the young ladies wander by on a sunny day.

There have been some practical suggestions about price finding from people with market knowledge, but from a client/purchaser perspective the view involves some perception of value. I have to say, I look at price last of all when viewing a lady's details. I tend to look at the bio and then browse services and albums, settling upon rates last of all. I pause when I see rates that are significantly outside the range I expect: if much lower, I wonder why and if much higher I wonder about the "Ferrari effect". There have been some observations on low fees, but I would be intrigued on the ladies' views of those quoting $500+/h. Am I missing something really obvious? (I don't buy or sell directly for a living) CB

Excellent thread. A thoughtful day for me: I grew up in an extended family scarred by war. I had a 19 year old uncle who died when his plane crashed in Yorkshire returning from Europe in 1943. As he died on English soil he was repatriated to my Gran and family. He came home one foggy night wrapped only in an Air Force blanket placed in a wooden crate, missing half his head. His Highway of Heroes was a deserted blacked out street with a sole English bobby to salute him on his way home. My Mum cried over that every year for the rest of her 74 years. His older brother never made it home for the funeral, being a wireless operator in the Far East with the RN. He spent five years in a metal box sending signals surrounded by anti-aircraft fire. He lived in his bedroom at home except to eat and go to work, scared to death of loud noises. He died at 62. "they also serve who only stand and wait" CB

Marvellous thread and excellent music. Another example of telepathy at work as I was trying today to re-hash my iPod for some new music. For sentimental reasons a reminder of being out west: Reverse Cowgirl by Evil Empire - iTunes (not very savvy with this link thing! :icon_rolleyes: ) CB

And that leads to the car chase thread...... CB

It's hard to make sense on a single post for some, but to be consistent over 500, Well Done !! I enjoy reading your contributions CB

It's the accent of the naked lady next to you whispering in your ear..... At the risk of doing exactly what I was cautioning against in another thread, I am told I have a "cute" accent. Mind you to my ears, it's everyone else that has an accent and not me! I do like French however, with Southern Irish probably equal. CB

It's only paranoia if you are being persecuted! Otherwise it's simply cautious. I share mrnice2's approach with openness amongst those with whom I have some kind of relationship: it's a matter of trust. However, unlike him, I would find some issues were people able to add 2+2 and identify me publicly. In my situation around work it would be difficult, so I exercise caution, not overt paranoia. So far it has not caused issues. There have been days when I felt like posting something which would have made the mental arithmetic work out: I thought twice about what was driving me to make the post and in the end reconsidered. In those instances it may actually have been a desire to be "recognised" in some fashion. In my own personal and professional situations, my life here and my hobby - no offence to those who dislike the label, but it seems to have currency - are simply part of a bigger picture and need to be kept in (a controlled) context. Happy Saturday CB

Isn't it strange how a virtual world can have a greater appeal for some than the real one? Why on earth would that happen? I suppose merely by asking the question I reveal myself as someone ignorant of the workings of the human psyche. I enjoy music, but really it is one facet of my life but not the defining one. I have eclectic tastes, but equally I realised again just today how boring some of my choices could appear to others. Likewise I find there are days when I don't wish to be outside my musical "comfort zone" and on others relish the idea. CB

What a redheaded star you are!! Well done CB

CBS change their requirements over time. The Krever Inquiry was the trigger for a mass reorganisation of the whole blood collection service. They try a risk management approach and so while they test every donated unit, they want to reduce the likelihood of them collecting blood which will test positive as they will have spent the collection costs for nought. Their screening for "high risk" is somewhat arbitrary. Tattoos and eating British Beef are still as far as I know exclusion criteria. The issue of sex with men is simply seen by them as a screening question to exclude a group who may have an increased risk of sero-positivity. The generic nature of the question "spares" their staff from having to delve into aspects of MSM activity which are truly high risk. CB

It's probably a new rubber loving super bug. Best be careful! :condom3: CB

"My husband lost a few friends because of what I do, but that's probably a blessing in disguise because a true friend wouldn't go out their way to try to make your life miserable.." True enough! If you and your man are happy, then don't let them get to you. Easy to say and less easy to do I grant. CB