Nearly two years ago, I reported my son, Alan, became seriously ill. It progressed so fast he had to quit work, ailing to the extent he could walk only steps without a walker.
He found a wheelchair, his voice faded to a whisper and he found it difficult to concentrate. His family doctor and various specialists seemed baffled. Because he could last only moments on a treadmill, they assumed he had serious heart problems, but could not agree on a specific one. Some of the probable diagnoses suggested imminent death. It looked like his life would end in his mid-40s.
At times, his condition would improve, but extra physical exertion or emotional tension would send him down again. He couldn’t even attend church, where he worked as minister of music; crowds exhausted him.
For nine months he lived with no sense of what ailed him. Then an internist diagnosed the illness as chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS), a condition triggered by a viral infection. The internist explained: "Exercise or tension causes an adrenal rush, which should energize your muscles. But it does the opposite, causing muscles to weaken, including the heart."
Medical science knew no cure. Sometimes people with CFS have remissions fully or partly; some never recover. Physically and emotionally he sank to his lowest, dropping well down on the disability scale. But he refused to give up and daily checked for new treatment on a CFS website.
In early 2007, he read about a preliminary study at the Stanford University School of Medicine involving a new drug that suggested hope for some sufferers. Researchers had treated 25 patients, 21 of whom responded with significant improvement that continued even after going off the medication at six months. The first patient experienced no relapses three years after ending treatment. The 21 patients who improved all appeared to have a type of CFS that originated from a viral infection. The report said researchers would begin a double-blind test to gain further data. Neither the internist nor the family doctor could see any reason for Alan to continue suffering, waiting years for additional research. The anti-viral drug used in the Stanford study did not have Canadian approval, so they prescribed Valtrex, a similar product.
He began the treatment, and within seven weeks his health began improving. In a year he returned to work part time, and began riding a bicycle and swimming laps. For months he experienced disorientation when in a crowd or when trying to do too much at once. We hoped he was on the way to gaining full health.
Alan had three things going for him: a personal faith that God would heal him; a determination to take responsibility for his own health; and doctors with the courage and imagination to try new things.
Did Alan’s faith and the doctors’ determination pay off? His wife said: "Alan has gradually improved over the last year. Three weeks ago he returned to work full time. His walking is still limited, so we hope for more improvement in this area. Now he follows a strict routine with swimming as his daily physio. We are grateful for this amount of recovery."
In this age of distrust and skepticism, miracles still happen.