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  3. Until last year, Alan Felzer was an energetic engineering professor who took the stairs to his classes two steps at a time. Now

Until last year, Alan Felzer was an energetic engineering professor who took the stairs to his classes two steps at a time. Now

admin2018-01-08  53
问题    Until last year, Alan Felzer was an energetic engineering professor who took the stairs to his classes two steps at a time. Now the 64-year-old grandfather sits strapped to a wheelchair, able to move little but his left hand, his voice a near-whisper. Felzer suffers from ALS, also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease. The fatal neurological disorder steals the body’s ability to move, speak and ultimately to breathe. But rather than succumb to despair along with his illness, Felzer turned to the Web to become his own medical researcher—and his own guinea pig.
   Dozens of ALS patients are testing treatments on their own without waiting on the slow pace of medical research. They are part of an emerging group of patients willing to share intimate health details on the Web in hopes of making their own medical discoveries.
   Some doctors caution that such patient-led research lacks rigor and may lead to unreliable results, false hopes and harm to patients. "The Internet is a wonderful tool, but you know, it’s buyer beware," said Dr. Edward Langston, immediate past chairman of the American Medical Association’s board.
   In Felzer’s case, the experiment’s results illustrate the obstacles that stand between patients and self-discovered breakthroughs. The drug he tried did no good. But he and his family felt they had little time and little to lose in trying. "ALS is such a short illness," said Felzer’s wife, Laura. She helps her husband communicate using sign language with his one good hand when his slow, halting words become difficult to understand. "You want to do what you can as fast as you can."
   The U. S. Food and Drug Administration has approved only one drug to treat ALS symptoms. It only works for some patients, and its effects are limited. As a result, Internet forums for ALS patients brim with links to the latest research offering any hint of promise. After Alan Felzer was diagnosed last year, his 33-year-old daughter, Karen, dived into the forums and found new hope. Working online, Karen Felzer and Macedo recruited nearly 200 patients worldwide to take a specific lithium dosage and answer standard surveys to gauge their symptoms. They began running their study through a Web site called PatientsLikeMe. com, using it to attract volunteers and track their progress.
   On the site, patients share detailed information about their symptoms and the drugs they are taking. The site focuses on conditions that have stubbornly resisted medical science, such as ALS, Parkinson’s and multiple sclerosis. The site’s founders hope professional and amateur researchers alike will dip into the resulting pool of data and emerge with insights that lead to better treatments. "My ultimate frustration that drove this site into existence was an overall feeling that there was a lack of transparency and speed or urgency" by the medical system, said Jamie Heywood, who co-founded PatientsLikeMe months before his own brother died of AI.S.
Which of the following is true according to the author?
选项 A、Patient-led research is risky and should be banned.
B、Drug sales on the Web have gone out of control.
C、Patient-led drug trials defy medical system.
D、ALS is the most deadly disease identified so far.
答案C
解析 此题为细节推断题。在最后一段最后一句提到Jamie Heywood的兄弟死于ALS，此前几个月，他和其他人合作创办了Patients LikeMe网站。他说：“兄弟的病使他感到医疗体制缺乏透明度，缺乏办事效率或紧迫性。”第二段也提到医学研究的慢节奏(the slow pace of medical research)，而ALS又是一种短期内致命的疾病(short illness)，所以病人及其家属只能抓紧一切时间做能做到的一切(do what you can as fast as you can)，可见，这种自发的实验源自对医疗体制的不满。因此，C选项为正确答案。
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