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The brilliant remedy you may never see
23rd June 2006
I've got to credit the drugs companies with one thing...
They never fail to surprise me.
Just when you think they can't possibly sink any lower, along comes another story so outrageous you think they MUST be making it up.
(It also has a hidden 'nasty' side effect: it makes you forget you're drinking a cup of tea so that you end up pouring it over your lap).
So, what are the drugs companies doing to us THIS time?
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Greed before eyesight
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Before you read this, make sure you're sitting down.
Oh, and put your cup of tea safely out of harm's way on a table.
Because this is truly outrageous.
Ready?
Okay, here goes.
Macular degeneration effects about 20,000 of us in this country, so it's a pretty big problem.
Basically, the delicate cells of the macula in the eye become damaged and stop working. A common cause is agerelated macular degeneration, where victims suffer a gradual loss of vision.
In some cases, AMD can lead to blindness.
But a major drug company called Genentech has invented a medicine that seems to cure macular degeneration.
Doctors who use the drug, called Avastin, report success after success after success. It really does seem to be one of those breakthroughs that come along once in a blue moon.
Better still, the medicine is cheap, effective and ready to use now.
So, three cheers for Genentech!
Well before you get the bunting out and throw a party in their honour, here's the news that had me scalding my lap...
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Legal GBH
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Genentech isn't prepared to let us have this cheap, effective medicine just yet no matter how many people go blind as a consequence.
Instead, it wants to develop another product that's 100 times more expensive.
You see, Avastin was developed as a treatment for cancer. Its use as an AMD remedy has come about entirely by accident.
And Genentech's not happy.
Why? Because one phial of Avastin can be split and used by dozens of patients.
It works out at around a tenner a dose.
Pah! Hardly worth the effort of producing it, is it?
Instead, they want to make us use a substance called Lucentis a derivative of Avastin, but repackaged and rebranded exclusively for eyes...
... at a cost of £1,000 a dose.
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That's right - ONE THOUSAND POUNDS.
That's more like it eh? After all, there are shareholders to please, bonuses to pay, champagne to drink... it's a hard life being a drugs company executive.
But fear not! Surely the government will come to our aid? After all, this is a drug that works!
And it's not just the 'alternative, long-haired natural remedy weirdos' bleating on this time.
Real doctors with lab coats and stethoscopes and everything are saying that Avastin is a near-miracle.
Well if you think the government's going to step in, think again.
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(Literally) blinded by red tape
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So, we have a drug and we know it works.
But it looks like there's no chance of the likes of you and I ever having access to it - because it's not been approved by the National Institute for Clinical Excellence.
(Can you believe their acronym is N.I.C.E?!)
And it seems it never will be, because for NICE to give approval, Genentech have to apply for a licence for Avastin to be used specifically as a remedy for AMD.
And what, dear reader, do you think the chances are of that happening?
That's right - less than zero.
It's so inept and ridiculous, it's almost funny.
Oh - except this is putting people at risk of blindness.
Not so funny after all then.
Still, there is SOMETHING we can do about it...
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Protect your health with natural remedies, and hit them where it hurts
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Honestly, when making fat profits is so obviously the main motivation of drugs companies, how on earth can you trust them?
In my opinion, the simple answer is - you can't.
Now, I'm not saying you should shun all man-made drugs in protest.
You must ALWAYS follow the advice of your doctor.
But there's no denying that using natural remedies makes such good sense.
Natural remedies have NO nasty side effects and in many cases are just as powerful and effective as something cooked in a laboratory.
It's just that they're not shouted about in the mainstream, because they can't make anyone any real money.
That's why I think services like The Good Life Letter are so necessary.
And why I'm so pleased that you're part of it.
On Sunday, Dr Gary Null, one of the world's most outspoken and impressive doctors, is going to reveal natural, safe ways to protect your eyesight from a whole host of eye diseases.
And they won't cost you a penny.
No doubt the drugs companies would like to stop him, but tough.
I look forward to joining you again on Sunday.
Until then,
Yours as ever,
Ray Collins
The Good Life Letter.
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