Judging from what we see of Jobs in the media and other reports about his physical appearance—especially those emphasizing his "gaunt" appearance in the past few years—help us glean anything about what current health challenges he might be facing?
He's always looked very thin to me. He's a lot more gaunt than I am.
Some people are suggesting that as part of his 2004 cancer treatment he had a so-called Whipple operation (in which parts of the bile duct, pancreas, stomach and small intestine are removed). Would that procedure explain some of the possible complications he might be facing now?
I only know from what I've read, but my understanding is that his pancreatic cancer resection was not a Whipple. Now it doesn't really matter, and the bottom line is that it shouldn't have any affect on his transplant. If he had had a Whipple it would have made the initial transplant more difficult, but it shouldn't be making a difference now.
Are there other ways Jobs' liver health might have been affected by his bout with pancreatic cancer?
First, when health care providers say "pancreatic cancer," they generally refer to adenocarcinoma—which is not what he had. We don't do liver transplants for metastatic adenocarcinoma of the pancreas. There are thousands of people every year who have metastatic adenocarcinoma. Because of the high-profile cases, people think they can have a transplant for that, and that the reason centers are turning them down is because they are not Steve Jobs. That is not the situation at all. He had what is called a neuroendocrine tumor, more specifically an insulinoma. And based on the biology and presentation—those that are metastatic only to the liver—only those are suitable for transplantation. He developed metastasis in his liver—and only in his liver—and that was able to justify transplantation.
Given what we know about liver transplants and their success rate in neuroendocrine pancreatic cancer patients, is there any way to speculate about what we might expect to see for Jobs's health in the near future?
It's impossible to know what we're going to see down the road when we don't know what the issue is. Some of the potential complications won't affect your ability to work, and some of them will.
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Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisSince when is liver transplant listed among the treatments for pancreatic cancer? Pancreatic cancer is usually fatal. Obviously we are dealing with a special set of circumstances here the outcome of which will unfold over time.
It's not clear whether some people are rejected for not being S. Jobs but it's clear that Jobs got the liver for being Steve Jobs.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisWhen what you have is an insulinoma neuroendocrine tumor that is only metastatic in the liver. Did you read the article?
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisReally? Were you monitoring the liver transplant lists and noticed that Jobs skipped to the head of the line? His transplant biology was put into a database and matched with potential owners. That's how it works. Perhaps he got into the express lane and took a liver that should have gone to some orphan child living in some impoverished circumstances, or had a Chinese liver shipped over in a cooler while iPads crossed palms at the port of entry, but those scenarios seem unlikely
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisSteve Job really, really, "really" needs a Magee
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisMagna Field Technology (magic magee healing device with its six inch body penitration) has been borrowed to produce the likes of Cold Laser Therapy (two inch penitration) the Q-Ray Bracelet (one centimeter penitration).
google (canada) -- cbc.ca bruce voigt
Wish I had a nickel for every uninformed,opinion-driven response,(to medical articles), that I read online.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisI could then stop practicing medicine.
;)
I wish Mr Jobs well, and a full recovery from whatever is aiing him.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisOne might wonder if 'everything' is related as opposed to one 'causing' the OTHER or "complications arising FROM" .. ?
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisLiver transplants are very commonly required by those with excess iron. Cancer is closely related to excess iron so much so that they have iron binding cancer drugs. They have recently shown while conducting a vascular study that those men who did not eat a high iron diet were signficantly less likely to GET cancer. His "medical leave" could be simply his slow decline from his initial problem which most likely has not been treated which is his excess iron. His 'tan' gives him away too. Imho.
"direct hepatocarcinogenic effect of free iron is mediated by the generation of oxygen reactive species and oxidative damage that are mutagenic and carcinogenic"
"Iron chelation new therapeutic approach for hepatocellular carcinoma"
"Desferoxamine (DFO)--mediated iron chelation: rationale for a novel approach to therapy for brain cancer."
"Several clinical studies have shown it to have
antitumor activity in the treatment of neuroblastoma,
leukemia, bladder carcinoma, and hepatocellular carcinoma."
Quote: Steve Job really, really, "really" needs a Magee
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisAnswer: Another that I've read about is a chamber which you sit / lie in which is a certain temperature. This high constant temperature raises the body into a 'fever state' and this kills the cancer. It seems to be getting some press and is backed by medical studies that I've been watching over the years. The 'mode of operation' may be the fact they've shown iron to be closely involved in cancer and by injecting iron into the person the iron gravitates to the tumor and NOW they heat it to a temperature and kill the tumor. Now if a person were to KNOW that iron IS 'already there' like has been shown .. then .. WHY wouldn't simple heating of the whole body not simply DO what the doctors are doing with the injection of the iron ?
"Whole-body hyperthermia is used to treat metastatic cancer that has spread"