Word: scleroderma
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Once there, some experts fear, the gel may trigger a variety of autoimmune disorders as the body tries to protect itself from the perceived invader. These include scleroderma, which thickens and stiffens the skin and causes a buildup of fibrous tissue in the lungs and other organs; lupus erythematosus, which causes chronic joint pain and rashes; and rheumatoid arthritis...
Frightening anecdotes abound. Kali Korn, 41, of Los Angeles came down with scleroderma last year, a decade after she had silicone implants inserted for cosmetic reasons. The skin has so constricted around her fingers that she is virtually unable to move them. Doctors removed the implants in March, and she now says, "I feel much better. I wish I had realized 10 years ago that how I looked was fine...
...into alarm when animal studies indicated that DMSO might cause eye damage. That led to a virtual ban on clinical tests of the drug. But only a year later the restrictions were eased to permit experiments in such hard-to-treat illnesses as interstitial cystitis (a painful bladder inflammation), scleroderma (a condition characterized by thickening and hardening of the skin and sometimes internal organs as well) and rheumatoid arthritis...
Many of the most reputable physicians have given up. Before the ban, the Cleveland Clinic's Dr. Arthur L. Scherbel was getting significant and hopeful responses in scleroderma, or "hidebound disease," a disorder of collagen throughout the body that makes it difficult for the victim to clench his hands, and in many cases causes hideously painful fingertip ulcers. Dr. Scherbel has not used DMSO since the ban, except for patients who still have a supply. "We have tentative permission to use DMSO," he says, "but how do you get a drug company to release it?" Fearful of FDA reprisals...
...hormone is now so great that many manufacturers are turning to the far larger whale glands -the size of an egg. Melville's pelagic Cain now helps to supply doctors with a valued treatment for at least 30 diseases, from common and crippling rheumatoid arthritis to scleroderma...