Marie A. Rhodes

CCSVI as the Cause of Multiple Sclerosis: The Science Behind the Controversial Theory by Marie A. Rhodes. A give away book that I indicated that I wanted because I have a friend with this disease and I hoped to understand it better and perhaps pass on the book. It is also a story of medical science -- when "everyone" thinks that X is caused by Y and then someone else comes along with a whole new metric, because we have more tools and info every day, how is that evaluated? How do you know show more what is "true"? What if Society of X is sure that Y is true and that W is dangerous? What happens? How can valid tests be done? And what if you the patient -- how can you wait for proper double-blind studies that might conclude it is helpful too late to help you? It is a real pickle, it seems to me. The flip side is we all know how dangerous untested treatments might be, or what a waste of money and time and resources chasing false hope might be. So I was also interested in trying to discern how these questions are sorted out.

I have a great deal of respect for this author, she has compiled a huge amount of info. As a complete lay person in this science, it seemed complete, competent, structured, and even in part written in pretty understandable language. If I had MS this would be one book I would study very carefully, among I am sure a lot of other resources. And have I no ability to evaluate the references....the best I could conclude as a complete lay person is that "more study is needed" but I realize that is pretty lame and I was supposed to conclude more forthrightly from this info. I'm just not that type of person. I am keeping MS sufferers in my prayers tonight. show less

This book is a key piece in understanding the complexity of a horrible and debilitating disease. It is a must-read for all who care for MS patients. Rhodes has prepared a very interesting book for the medical profession. By challenging the paradigm she stretches the reader's limits with readable factual data.

What I found exciting about this book is the clarity of thought, the focus, the well-referenced arguments, and the controversial topic. What Rhodes does is present a thesis that rather show more than being a disease of immune dysregulation, that MS is primarily a vascular disease. The resulting damage of specific damage in the the cerebro-spinal system is the cause of the disease we call multiple sclerosis.

While I personally do not believe that Rhodes thesis is correct, (I am personally a proponent of genetics as the etiology) she leave this as an open question. The vascular component of MS is clearly in need of greater research. Interestingly, the August 2011 issue of Nature discusses a multi-institutional study identifying 29 new genetic variants associated with MS with five being strongly linked to the disease. Rather than continuing a chicken-and egg discussion, this new research may lead to answers as to why there is abnormal angiogenesis in MS patients - ultimately leading to cures.

Rhodes book needs to be read by this group as they conduct further studies. Perhaps the answer is in some abnormal coding for angiogenisis on the genome. show less

CCSVI as the cause of multiple sclerosis : the science behind the controversial theory by Marie A. Rhodes

Why I picked this book up: I was selected as one of the Early Reviewers and am very pleased that I was. I received this book one day and it didn’t say from whom. I'm involved in the M.S. society and didnt know if it was from one of those things or not. It was not untile I logged back on to this Librarything.com that I saw that I received this as an early reviewer. When I saw that I show more jumped right into it, read the first two chapters and read the rest on my way to San Fran. I have M.S. and it has been a very difficult thing in the last few years.

Why I finished this book: I finished this book for multiple reasons. This book was written by a nurse, was very informative, was nonfiction (I really enjoy nonfiction) and provided hope for me while reading it. I read it on the way to a M.S. clinic at UCSF and understanding the cost of both treatment and development and the stakeholders involved in M.S. She did a wonderful job laying out the educational piece make it very readable for professionals and the general public and offered some resources at the end. The was also very fair in presenting both sides, that it might be something to look further into and that it is not proven to be curative but may play a role in M.S.

Rating: I’d give this book a 4.5 star rating out of 5 stars. I really enjoyed this book, it brought hope, was professional and I’d like to find out more about this topic as I go along my life with this disease. The new neurologist that I went to was great and didn’t put too much stock in this book, which was not surprising given where we are in the research or lack thereof so far. Overall I am thankful I had the opportunity to read this book. Thank you Librarything for selecting me. show less

CCSVI is hardly an acronym that rolls effortlessly off the tongue, but anyone who is stricken with the dreadful multiple sclerosis disease or has a loved one so afflicted will be receptive to any scientific research aimed at its prevention or cure. Most physicians treat MS as a disease of the autoimmune system, which is the province of neurologists, who have developed methods of mitigating its effects, principally with drugs. Society is far better served, however, by preventing disease, and show more prevention relies on identifying its cause. This book discusses research into cerebrospinal venous insufficiency as a possible cause of MS. This mouthful is a controversial theory suggesting that MS has a vascular origin.
Coincidentally, about the time this book arrived for review, a newspaper article stated that the Oregon Primate Research Center has identified a virus in monkeys that produces a disease similar to MS. A viral origin would suggest that a vaccine might be developed. The heart of the controversy about CCSVI appears to a layman such as I to center on who gets the research funding.
The author of this book is a victim of the disease herself. She has been treated with the therapy, which is a process of relieving restrictions in the vascular system, principally by inserting stents in the jugular veins. Ms. Rhodes has undertaken a difficult task in writing a book that is intended for two widely disparate audiences: physicians and lay persons. She accomplishes this by appending each chapter with a plain-language summary of the technical treatise. The text is also accompanied by numerous drawings and photographs. To those whose concern with the disease is personal, the most interesting aspect is a series of case histories that discuss their experience with the treatment.
I have a particular interest in this subject because of having a daughter and granddaughter-in-law with the disease, so I was pleased to receive this book to review. I am not qualified to evaluate the technical parts of the theory, and did not attempt an in-depth analysis. It appears that the scientists behind this theory have done an important service by identifying a correlation between vascular deficiencies and MS, but correlation is not causation and this seems to be where additional research is needed.
My analysis of this book can be summarized in two statements. First, the book has two audiences who would be best served by one detailed book for professionals and a succinct summary for those with a personal interest in MS. Second, regardless of the complexity of the subject matter, afflicted persons can still glean a great deal of value from the book in understanding the disease and assisting their physicians in directing its treatment. show less