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Warfare metaphors may counter health efforts
Medical practitioners need to rethink the military-style language they use when talking to patients about their illnesses, according to a Canadian academic who is currently visiting the University of the Sunshine Coast.
Dr Abraham Fuks is a Professor in the Departments of Medicine, Pathology and Oncology at McGill University in Montreal and has been invited to talk to USC staff, students and friends of the University this week.
He believes the use of terms like “combat the disease”, “cells under attack” and “targeting the cancer” by doctors can leave patients feeling like their bodies are battlefields, leading to unnecessary anxiety.
Dr Fuks will discuss his research in the language of medicine and its metaphoric structure at a special lecture for about 100 USC Foundation guests tomorrow evening (Tuesday 5 April).
The special lecture, entitled “The War on Disease: Winners and Losers”, will be held at USC’s Innovation Centre Auditorium from 6-7pm.
Dr Fuks has been an academic at McGill University since 1978 and served as Dean of the Faculty of Medicine from 1995 to 2006.
His research interests have included the immunogenetics of diabetes, the biology of tumour-associated antigens and cell adhesion molecules, and ethical aspects of the design of trials involving human subjects.
He has experience as a health care provider, having worked as a clinician in the McGill hospital system as a clinical immunologist and as a consultant at three teaching hospitals.
Dr Fuks developed his new research interest in patient-physician narratives following his scholarly work in research ethics and his experience in curricular development at the Faculty of Medicine at McGill University.
— Terry Walsh