Son cut pacemaker from dad’s chest with pocketknife...

This is a pretty demented story to say the least in such a nice rural area...

Most parents at one time or another complain that their child has “torn their heart out.” I doubt many of them have meant it in the most literal sense until this poor guy.

It’s been all over the Internet News pages – The 32-year-old Jesse Fierstine struck his 63-year-old father, Charles Fierstine, over the head with a flashlight and a piece of firewood on Saturday, then cut the pacemaker from his chest using a pocketknife.

Yeah, you read that right – a pocketknife. What a ghoulish son!

He cut a 6-inch gash in the older man's chest and removed the pacemaker, leaving an opening ¾” wide, according to search warrants.When Delaware County sheriff's deputies arrived at their rural Manchester home, wires were protruding from Charles Fierstine's chest. He ended up in intensive care at University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics.

A pacemaker is a device that's surgically implanted just below a person's left shoulder and is used to regulate a heart rate with wires that run through veins into the heart(atrium and ventricle). (My young son had a dual-chamber pacemaker implant in April 2008 and had an anger fit reading this)

Jesse has been arrested and charged with attempted murder.

But why he might have done that is known only to his family, police and himself.
The good news is that his father Charles is conscious and talking... more

A Heart-Stopping Story on Dr. Wes’ page – by cutting a pacemaker from someone’s chest is no easy feat, especially when a pen knife is used...

ACID/REFLUX PROBLEM

Had an appointment in Durban yesterday with my general surgeon; but the appointment wasn’t for me, but for JC.


Since the pacemaker implant his health seems to be in a downward spiral....


Completely like a roller coaster ride UP and DOWN...

He’s been suffering from acute abdominal pain and nausea. After blood tests, ultrasound scans and X-rays all the end results were normal.


However he was booked for a gastroscope and colonoscopy next week Thursday for further probing. (maybe an ulcer)



He started a course of Nexiam tablets, which after the 2nd tablet made a difference; the pain was subsiding.

Could it be an acid/reflux problem that exists?

When I had my Nissen Fundoplication last year October, my only main symptom was continuous coughing with mild reflux problems, but no heartburn...


Symptoms seems to differ from one person to the next

Human reovirus kills breast cancer stem cells..

What I am reading...

Researchers have discovered that the human reovirus; a virus that does not cause disease in humans, effectively destroys breast cancer cells and cancer stem cells.

This is a key discovery as cancer stem cells are very difficult to kill; as they respond poorly to chemotherapy and radiation.

Cancer researcher Dr. Patrick Lee explains, "Cancer stem cells are essentially mother cells. They continuously produce new cancer cells, aggressively forming tumours even when there are only a few of them. You can kill all the regular cancer cells in a tumour, but as long as there are cancer stem cells present, disease will recur."

An added benefit that human reovirus brings to the battle against cancer is that it also stimulates the immune system to attack cancer cells.

Because the human immune system also attacks the reovirus however, the researchers are now focusing on a method to rein in the immune system so that it will attack the cancer cells while leaving the reovirus unharmed. More...

The law in SA

Tough Law:

92% of South African adults agree with the statement 'The law should be tougher on those who break it'

Enter at your own risk:

65% of urban South Africans living in Gauteng agree with the statement 'When someone breaks into your house you have the right to shoot to kill'. For those in the Western Cape, this is 35%.

Unknown knowns:

Kwazulu Natal has the highest rate of unreported violent crime, 57% of victims of violent crime did not report the incident(s) to the police.

Cops and robbers:

74% of urban South Africans agree with the statement 'A lot of police are criminals themselves'.
Source: Fact a day


The truth is always the strongest argument.
Sophocles (496 BC-406 BC)

HaPpY 1st BiRtHdAy/AnNiveRsArY

HaPpY BiRtHdAy JC

Today is the 1st anniversary of your Medtronic Adapta ADDRO1 (Medtronic 5554 -53cm & 5054 - 58cm) dual-chamber pacemaker.

A year ago at the tender age of 20, and continuous misdiagnoses of asthma; he was diagnosed with SSS (sick sinus syndrome - bradycardia); only after his insistence on wearing a Holter monitor.

He is/was a professional rugby player in South Africa (Jr. Springbok) and still is a health/gym fanatic/freak.

His cardiologist said his heart is 100% and he can play rugby again?!!

However after a lot of reading and research I can’t see how he can take any impact with one lead/wire in his right atrium and one lead/wire in his right ventricle! Especially playing in the number 3 jersey, being a front row tight-head prop.

A friend of mine from Australia (young mom also with a pacemaker) said she's got two young friends (also with pacemakers), playing ice-hockey! Maybe I must get hold of their protective clothes...

He is battling to accept this pacemaker as well as not playing rugby again. He stopped training for a couple of months after the implant but is training once again, however he is still battling with fatigue and insomnia. I think he is acutely sensitive with this pacemaker controlling/taking over his body...

If any professional cardiologist/electro physiologist or knowledgeable person reading this and could advise any better options it would be greatly appreciated.

I wrote a letter to the Director of Cedars-Sinai Heart Institute -Dr. Eduardo Marban who is being honored by the American Heart Association’s Los Angeles Hear Ball with the ‘Passion of the Heart award’ More... http://www.csmc.edu/56.html

Dr. Marban is dedicated to finding ways to treat heart disease...

Marban says, "Sometime instead of getting a battery and a lot of metal put into your heart to create the pacemaker electronically, we may be able to do a simple treatment with a catheter injecting something into the heart, having it take root and the patient goes home with a new functioning pacemaker that we've created with biology not hardware."

These are the types of research Dr. Marban hopes will change the way heart disease is treated. They are the life blood of the institute and a few of his goals for the future.

We are desperately seeking for answers to help him now!
He wants to play rugby again...