Christmas is over. And a very different Christmas to boot. I am back in Norway, probably the most quiet and peaceful country in the world. Back to snow and ice and winter darkness. Back to a place where catastrophe and tragedy are strangers to most and familiar only to the few. The contrast could not … Continue reading A Hundred Thousand Bethlehems
Prostate Cancer for Dummies-Part 2: the PSA
Can you discuss prostate cancer without mentioning PSA? No, you cannot. Two years ago I shared an article on Richard Ablin, who discovered the Prostate-specific antigen (PSA) forty years ago. Ablin, the father of the famous test, believes that the medical profession has turned it into a monster. While this is an exaggeration, PSA testing and screening has certainly changed the landscape … Continue reading Prostate Cancer for Dummies-Part 2: the PSA
The Earthquake in Nepal. Looking back
It is April 26th. As I watched the evening news last night, it hit me: It's been a year since the great catastrophe that devastated parts of Nepal, the small country clinging precariously to the foothills of the Himalayas. The earthquake (or rather quakes) left one of the poorest countries on the planet in an impossible situation. Unfortunately, it is … Continue reading The Earthquake in Nepal. Looking back
Prostate Cancer for Dummies- Part 1: Basics
What is prostate cancer? First of all, it is a devastating disease which claims the life of many men, is difficult to treat and often impossible to stop. And on the other hand, prostate cancer is a condition which doesn't cause symptoms, let alone kill patients and probably shouldn't be called cancer at all. Confused? I hope you are. It is … Continue reading Prostate Cancer for Dummies- Part 1: Basics
THE PHILIPPINES AFTER TYPHOON YOLANDA- PART 1
Now all three parts are completed. I hope it makes interesting reading.
THE PHILIPPINES AFTER YOLANDA- PART 1
Three years of waiting have come to an end. It was in november 2010 that I started my Red Cross training and I have been a delegate, ready to be deployed as a surgeon for two and a half years. I have completed online courses, have lived through seven days of a simulated mission in the woods of Eidene, Norway, where we built up a field hospital and trained the practical aspects of being on a mission (ERU course). I have done the IMPACT course, another seven days of learning about the Red Cross movement, its structures and its goals and purpose. I was ready! Very, very ready to be deployed. But then, instead, came the long void: Luckily for planet earth, major disasters which would warrant deployment of a field hospital, just didn’t seem to happen anymore. ‘Well, great!’ the humanitarian in me thought and…
View original post 1,717 more words
‘Prostate cancer test has been misused for money’ Claims Pathologist Richard Ablin who discovered the PSA antigen 40 years ago
An interesting angle on the subject.

Pathologist Richard Ablin discovered the PSA antigen 40 years ago. He says it should never have been used as a cancer screening tool for all men
Your book condemns the use of PSA for cancer screening. What do you hope to accomplish? I hope to expose how the urology community and drug industry misused the PSA test, putting money over the best interests of patients. I also want to show how the US Food and Drug Administration failed in its duty to the public: its advisers warned that routine PSA screening would cause a public health disaster, but it was approved under pressure from advocacy groups and drug companies.
View original post 532 more words
THE PHILIPPINES AFTER YOLANDA – PART 3
Part 3 (link to part 1 and part 2) After the first ten days I feel more at ease. Things that looked exotic and strange to me a week ago seem now familiar. The days pass in a predictable pattern and we don’t get called out at night anymore. We usually set up our surgeries the day before which … Continue reading THE PHILIPPINES AFTER YOLANDA – PART 3
THE PHILIPPINES AFTER YOLANDA – Part 2
Part 2 - Work (read part 1 here) My first night has been warm and humid. My only cover is a sheet and even that is too warm. My pillow is soaking wet from my sweat. The team before us bought in ventilators with one of these miracle machines placed in each tent and they give … Continue reading THE PHILIPPINES AFTER YOLANDA – Part 2
THE PHILIPPINES AFTER YOLANDA- PART 1
Part I - Arrival Three years of waiting have come to an end. It was in november 2010 that I started my Red Cross training and I have been a delegate, ready to be deployed as a surgeon for two and a half years. I have completed online courses, have lived through seven days of … Continue reading THE PHILIPPINES AFTER YOLANDA- PART 1