The Rice belt journal. (Welsh, Calcasieu Parish, La.) 1900-19??, 1905-08-04
DISEASES AN ASSET
DOCTORS PAY FOR STUDY OF ALL.
MENTS OF THE BODY.
Peculiar Affections In Some Cases
Source of Income to the "Fortunate'
Posse One May Know Il
He Is Of Monetary Worth.

There are many patients in the Coun-
try with rare diseases who, instead OF
paying for treatment, could obtain a
substantial income as subjects OF SCI
entific study. There is, Of course,
something abhOrrent in the idea OF
submitting ones body to experiment.
Yet everybody does this when i'll, for,
as a great authority asserts, every bot
tie of medicine which the doctor pre-
scri5es is an experiment, Sometimes
the experiment is of more value to
the doctor than to the patient, for IN
this way medical science is built up
bit by bit
Some years ago a Canadian named
Alexis st. Martin had the COOd fortune
to receive a bullet wound in the stOn'
ach 1t did not kill him, and the wound
healed completely, but an opening al
ways remained. This fact was worth
a good income to Alexis for the rest
of his life. For nine years he hired
himself to a well-known physician,
who was thereby enabled TO study the
process Of digestion in a way it had
never been studied before.
In a great many hospitals in this
country there are people under treat
ment for ailments which puzzle the
medical profession. and in many cases
the symptoms of the new complaints
entail so little suffering that the pa
tients would take their discharge but
for the fact that ther a.C compensated
for lying in In cases of this kind
the heads Of the hospital staff go into
the case infinitely and detail clever.
doctor to pay strict attention to the
patient, In course of time. when sui
ficient is known to warrant such an
action, the medical students are per-
mitted TO study the case, visiting and
examining the patient daily under the
direction Of visiting physician. 1t is
only those unfortunate people who
have submitted their case to special
study by large staff who know how
very trying IS the ordeal to which they
have occasionally to submit.
. Of course, the common diseases,
such as typhoid fever, consumption
and bronchitis, are of no money value.
But were man in this country to get
bubonic plague or blackwater fever
or yellow jack, he could undoubtedly
command price. Most American doc
tors have never seen cases of these
diseases. Consequently they are liable
TO make mistakes, and when practicing
at any of the great seaports, into which
every variety of disease enters at one
time or another, their mistakes might
have serious consequences.
Sometimes, too, person has a COM
mon disease in some unusual place.
He is, OF course pathological curl
Osity, and as worthy of his hire as a
fat boy or giant. Cancer, for exam
pie, is far too common. But an epithe-
liam cancer on the upper lip is a great
rarity and any one with such an in
Fiction could successfully demand a.
fee for exhibition at the meetings Of
medical societies.
How are you to know if you possess
a valuable disease? If your medical
man is anxious to get photograph of
the affected part, if he brings some one
else to see it, if he asks you to appear
before a society, you may be sure
your disease is a good asset.