What Went Wrong with the NHS?     by Professor Paul Goddard

 Presidential Address to the Bristol Medico-Chirurgical Society October 2010

Examining Myths and Legends of State Medicine

 

Any discourse on the UK’s National Health Service (NHS) is liable to be bogged down in misconceptions unless the accompanying myths and legends are first examined.

It is often thought that the NHS represents the first health service of its kind. But was there recognisable State Medicine before the NHS. The NHS is seen as the proud achievement of the Labour party and that no other party can be trusted to care for it. Is this true? Are these facts or fiction?

Other statements often heard about the NHS include:

• The NHS is free at the point of delivery
• The NHS is the best health service in the World
• The NHS is better now than it has ever been
• The NHS provides cradle to grave health care
• Nurses are selfless comforting angels who work far too hard

Conversely there are people putting almost directly opposed opinions including: 

• We would be better off without the NHS
• The NHS is rubbish
• The NHS is inordinately expensive
• Better management would sort it out (easily)
• The doctors are selfish, overpaid and spend most of their time doing private work.

Are these facts or are they fiction?

These myths and legends are examined in a full article in the WEMJ in order that we might better understand what went wrong in the NHS and how to progress.

 

Therapeutic Vaccines for HIV and Cancer: The Long Fox Memorial Lecture

Presented to the  Bristol Medico Chirurgical Society  at Bristol University 10.11.2010

 

Professor Angus Dalgleish

Professor of Oncology, St George’s Hospital,

University of London

 

Abstract (Full article in the WEMJ)

 

A classical vaccine approach to HIV vaccination has been elusive for many reasons. However, the fact that chimps and about 5% of humans who become infected do not progress to AIDS has raised the question of a vaccine to prevent disease progression and not necessarily infection. Targeting the bits of the virus that stimulate the disease process is theoretically possible and a vaccine along these lines is under preparation for clinical trials. Therapeutic vaccines are also used in cancer and the first one "provenge" has just been approved by the FDA for use in advanced prostate cancer. Many more are in development. Recent research suggests that certain drugs can enhance the effect of vaccines and the most impressive candidates for this are the thalidomide derived IMiDS such as Revlimid(Lenolidomide) and Pomalidomid.

 

key words HIV, therapeutic vaccine, C5gp120, Graft versus host disease, cancer vaccines for prostate, lung, melanoma, etc, Immunomodulatory drugs, Revlimid/lenalidomide, Pomalidomide.