This Is MS Multiple Sclerosis Community: Knowledge & Support

I've recently come across a review of Dr. Weiner's book, "Curing MS: How Science is Solving the Mysteries of Multiple Sclerosis".

The review was published in the latest issue of "InsideMS", from the NMSS.

Has anyone read the book yet? Any thoughts?
I'm not usually one for medical books but, it would seem that the book is a type of historical investigation. The history of the search of an identification of MS.

It does sound interesting.

Cheers,

Niko

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"Avoid making irrevocable decisions when tired or hungry." -- Robert Heinlein

I met Dr. Weiner earlier this year at the Race to Erase MS event in Southern California. My take on Dr. Weiner and his book. He basically believes the medical world knows enough today about MS to successfully mediate and/or cure the disease. He is firmly planted in the "auto immunity" is the cause of MS community and was not happy to hear my questions during the Q&A portion of the event that pointed at other possible causes for the disease. The book is basically a rehash of MS basics, auto-immune response in MS, and the advances in drug therapy to help manage the disease.

Read it if you feel the need to read all there is on MS as I don't think there is much new or revolutionary about the contents of the book. I must admit I find the conversations on this messageboard much more intersting.

Waken

Waken,

Thanks for posting. That gives me some more info to mull over. The book sounds like a history (of-sorts) of the research up to the present. Perhaps if he's only focused on the auto-immune angle, then someone else will step up and chronicle other views.

Cheers,

Niko

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"Avoid making irrevocable decisions when tired or hungry." -- Robert Heinlein

I've just finished reading this book after seeing the review in the NMSS's InsideMS. I was able to get a copy from my local library. I found the book to be well written and informative. In a highly compressed nutshell, it covers Dr. Weiner's 30 year history researching MS and treating patients from his first experiment with EAE to his position on the FDA advisory board during the approval hearings for mitoxantrone. I enjoyed the book and would recommend it to others.

That's just my $0.02 worth though.

NHE

NHE,

Thanks for the review! I'm now more inclined to obtain the book.

Two cents are still worth something

Cheers,

Niko

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"Avoid making irrevocable decisions when tired or hungry." -- Robert Heinlein

I got the book from the library and then got my own copy off ebay for a reduced cover price because I did not want to have to rush thru it. I am still working my way thru it. Interesting facts and info in the book.

Great thread, I have wondered what others with MS thought of the books as I was working thru it. In fact I guess that goes for just about anything I read regarding MS, I alwasy wonder what others w/ MS think. I get feedback or info from other people all the time, but it is nice to get it from someone who can relate

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Monica

I am on chapter 4 and so far I feel it is a must read. You may disagree with the autoimmune theory but the book does an excellent job at explaining why we know what we know today about MS. Weiner puts into words what a MS patient experiences in a very understandable way. He does a very good job at explaining why MS is so mysterious and why it is hard to come up with a cure. It is interesting to see Weiner apply scientific thinking to explore the mysteries of MS.

I definitely want my close relatives to read it to understand what I am dealing with daily. I am also thinking about buying the book for the people I know with MS.

Sure, you can nitpick around and not like this or not like that, but it's a peep inside of a professional culture we can only speculate about from the outside. It's not going to cure your MS. It's a story, albeit a true and ongoing one. But it's entertainment first.

I love this book.

He does get into some of the fringes of the science towards the latter chapters. Don't approach this book like it's going to give you some new insight on vitamin D. It's not that kind of book. It will show you that there are docs who sincerely care and that it's not just about big pharma trying to make big money.

This book helped my perspective.

enjoy!
napay

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My Starting Point
Understanding MS 101: Doctor Talk and People Talk<br /><br />

I'm about 7 months post-diagnosis, and so I feel like I'm at the bottom of a huge mountain of reading, but an acquaintance who has MS lent me a trove of books, and this is the second one I got into. (The first one, which actually I bought after doing internet research, was Prof. Swank's book, and the third one, also on my own, was Prof. Jelinek's book.) I got about 2/3 of the way through Weiner's book, stopped because I was busy with work, and am now rereading it. I think it's definitely a worthwhile read.

Even if you place more stock in theories and approaches that are outside the mainstream, I think you've got to understand the mainstream approach, and that means reading its history. As others have written above, this book is an encapsulation of a 30 year career of a doctor at the forefront of his field working at one of the best hospitals and research centers in the USA. It's very educational and interesting to follow the theories that have been propounded, tested, adjusted, etc. It's essential to see how science works, how research gets done, with all the pros and cons of the process.

As I search for a neurologist whose attitude, aptitude, and approach fits with mine, I want to understand EVERYTHING, even if only in broad strokes, that is going on with research into MS. It may be a tall order, but I don't expect it to happen all at once. This book is a great place to start.

p.s. It also introduces a lot of the top players in today's research scene -- they were often the junior colleagues of Dr. Weiner in his days at Massachusetts General Hospital, etc.