Interview with MJ Fox

[Bruce]

For the first time, I received a newspaper from Medtronics and it contained an interview with MJF and I really liked the way he expressed himself. On having Parkinson's:"It's made me a better person by a long shot, because as the exterior gets ravaged and assaulted, if you do the appropriate work, the inside gets very strong, very single-minded, very disciplined, very compassionate and very focused." On giving people hope: "It's a matter of breaking down a few doors, shaking a few people out of their bureaucratic doldrumsand getting people to make a commitment." He also said "We actually are close to a cure," His words could be a great formula for all of us to follow. Bruce

[Carole]

Bruce-
That was a great article by MJ Fox. I, too, took heart from what he said. He answered the question re: his experience with surgery: "I had a thalamotomy in 1998, which was tremendously successful and got rid of the very visible symptoms on the left side. But then the Parkinson's progressed, and I eased my situation by going public. I take Sinemet and a dopamine agonist, Requip, and get good results."
When asked, "How do you view deep brain stimulation as a treatment for Parkinson's symptoms? Fox: It's a reassurance, a tremendous break-through. My doctors believe in it, so it's an option for me. What makes it most compelling is that it's adjustable, unlike pallidotomy and other surgical options.
Carole