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October 25th, 2011
12:27 PM ET
Steve Jobs: A difficult patientAll those vague statements about his health that Steve Jobs put out in the last few years caused endless speculation, as the world tried to read into what could really be going on. But now, with the biography "Steve Jobs" with Walter Isaacson, we know that behind many of those optimistic statements was a cancer that was spreading from pancreas to liver, and finally to bones and elsewhere in the body. One of the biggest surprises is that while he received state of the art medical care, he went against doctors' orders many times. When his pancreatic neuroendocrine tumor was first discovered in October 2003, doctors said he was lucky that it had been detected so early, and it could be removed before definitely spreading. But, in Jobs' own words, "I really didn't want them to open up my body, so I tried to see if a few other things would work." Those "other things" included a strict vegan diet, acupuncture, herbal remedies, and other alternative techniques - even consulting a psychic. His family pleaded with him, but it wasn't until June 2004, when a CAT scan revealed that the tumor had grown and perhaps spread, that he had to realize he couldn't successfully will his own cancer treatment. The surgery in July 2004 involved a modified Whipple procedure, removing part of the pancreas. But it wasn't a cure: Doctors found cancer spread to three spots on his liver during the operation. It's impossible to know whether having the surgery sooner would have removed the cancer before it had spread. Yet Jobs told everyone he had been "cured." In his famous 2005 Stanford Commencement speech, a rare moment of being forthcoming about his cancer to the public, he said "I had the surgery and I'm fine now." Jobs also went against doctors' orders with his eating habits. Since he was a teenager, Jobs had practiced strange routines involving fasting, and would go on obsessive diets. That's a problem because, the stomach needs enzymes to digest food and absorb nutrients, making it harder for patients who've had pancreas surgery to get enough protein. The standard of care is to have frequent meals and a diet with a variety of proteins from meats, fish and milk. But, as Isaacson points out, "Jobs had never done this, and he never would." Flash forward to 2008, when Jobs and his doctors knew the cancer was spreading. Besides being in pain, Jobs was losing a lot of weight. This was partly a result of the partial Whipple procedure, partly because his appetite was reduced because of cancer and morphine, and also because he insisted on the same restrictive diets and fasts he'd practiced since his teenage years. Sometimes he would spend weeks only eating something like apples, or a carrot salad with lemon, and then abruptly denounce that food. Isaacson writes:
In a public statement he attributed his weight loss to "a hormone imbalance that has been robbing me of the proteins my body needs to be healthy. Sophisticated blood tests have confirmed this diagnosis. The remedy for this nutritional problem is relatively simple." We all had speculations, but what that actually meant was: Jobs had a hormone imbalance because his cancer had spread to his liver. He underwent a liver transplant in 2009, when his health was declining rapidly. It was successful, but doctors found that there were tumors throughout the organ, meaning the cancer had probably spread elsewhere. They also found spots on the thin membrane surrounding internal organs. Jobs again went against doctors when he insisted that they not pump out his stomach when they needed to perform a routine procedure. That led to pneumonia, and he might have died. But he survived, and didn't lose his stubbornness, even while deeply sedated. He thought the oxygen monitor on his finger was "ugly and too complex," and offered ideas for making the design simpler. His health and spirits appeared to improve after the transplant, but in November 2010 he experienced another downturn. He was a mere 115 pounds at Christmas. Doctors saw evidence of new tumors. "Every inch of his body felt like it had been punched, he told friends," Isaacson writes. And his dietary finickiness continued. The family had a part-time cook who made him a variety of healthy options, but he would refuse them after merely touching one or two to his tongue. Cancer curbs appetite, but Isaacson suggests Jobs had a deeper complication from his psychological attitude toward food. He took a third medical leave in January 2011. Jobs was among the first 20 people in the world to have a complete sequencing of all of the genes of his cancer tumor, and of his normal DNA. In this way, his medical team could choose specific drugs targeted at the molecular pathways that were promoting the abnormal growth of cancer cells. "I'm either going to be one of the first to be able to outrun a cancer like this, or I'm going to be one of the last to die from it," Jobs told Isaacson. In July 2011, however, doctors had trouble pushing back against the cancer even with targeted drugs. Jobs had stopped going to work; he was in pain, couldn't eat most solid food, and passed many days watching TV. When Jobs announced his resignation as Apple's CEO at the board meeting on August 24, the cancer had spread to his bones and other body parts. "I've had a very lucky career, a very lucky life," he told Isaacson. "I've done all that I can do." soundoff (1,566 Responses)1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 Next »Leave a Reply to Relentless Collision
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Get a behind-the-scenes look at the latest stories from CNN Chief Medical Correspondent, Dr. Sanjay Gupta, Senior Medical Correspondent Elizabeth Cohen and the CNN Medical Unit producers. They'll share news and views on health and medical trends - info that will help you take better care of yourself and the people you love.
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Since progress with healthy lifestyles is being formulated every day and cancer treatment progress is also constantly changing, Mr. Jobs chose options that might not have been in his best interest because of lack of knowledge. Enough information from his medical history is available to others to help more people so that they might make better choices. Being a busy and/or sick person, he made his choices in life and left the message according to the article that possibly others could learn from his decisions. His skills were more suited to the electronics world. Some TV shows are dealing with better general health practices but dealing with pancreatic cancer problems is still in progress. There isn't very much information available to anyone via media sources yet.
We're all "complicated," and this story proves that some geniuses may be more complicated than most. I have a hard time reading the negative comments so many are writing about him. Why can't we simply acknowledge his genius and talent, and just let the all-too-human side of him be?
Pancreatic cancer is the fastest spreading type of cancer and the quickest to kill. He OUTLIVED most pancreatic cancer patients by at least 71/2 yrs due to his own research and wisely ignoring the Dr's advice to cut, poison and burn.
So sick of these oncologists who spread their doctrine, and then offer condolences to the berieved families.
Steve Jobs fought his battle with his illness the way he wanted to. We should all respect his choices, whether we agree with him or not. It was his battle to fight. He knew the options and choices he had, and expense was not a concern. Steve lived his life to the fullest every turn of his days.....loving his family........and his company......Apple.
Robert, there are different forms of pancreatic cancer. Jobs had a very rare neuroendocrine tumor, which is much much more slow growing. The more common type of pancreatic cancer can kill in just a few weeks after discovery.
Sadly some intelligent people just don't know where their intelligence ends and their ignorance starts.
well put....
I couldn't have said it better myself. I call these patients 'too smart for their own good.
Really, DocPedro? Easy to judge.
Gee Victoria I am not being judgemental. I am speaking from experience. I deal with this crap every day of my life. So unless you know more about it than someone who does I suggest you shut your pie hole.
hard to admit you dont know it all...
Victoria-People like you make me want to hand the x-rays, meds, and scalpel to the patient and say: "If you know so much about it then here you do it. Let me know how it works out for you".
Agreed.
Jobs certainly changed the world through the power of his ideas but he was more of a marketing genius than an inventor. Anyone who compares him to Edison or Einstein knows nothing about science or engineering skills. The man's arrogance was legendary and it seems to have gotten in the way of his judgment. Apparently he seems to have been infected with the California hollistic mentality that also killed actor Steve McQueen. People like that find it very hard to cede control of their own health to any doctor and he paid the ultimate price for this stupidity. RIP.
He's so arrogant.......its mind boggling....My son died from cancer at age 26 and I can assure you, he would have eaten anything the drs told him to and been grateful to have drs that cared so much about him. His own doctors were wonderful and Mr Jobs is a perfect example of people that think drs dont want to use herbal or holistic cures....theyd rather watch the patient suffer from the effects of chemotherapy and radiation...which on its face is absurd. But Mr Jobs you lived and died your way, congrats. Hope your kids understand what you did and why....cuz I sure dont.
Steve Jobs was a classic narcissist. He thinks he knows best and his way is the only way. That line of thinking killed him. He didn't eat and failed to follow doctor's advice. Bottom line is he failed to adapt to the situation and those that fail to adapt don't survive. Nature has proven that since the dawn of time.
Additionally, Steve Jobs did not treat people well (e.g his biological daughter), which was a result of his narcissism. His reputation for belittling employees is well known. While the media hails him as this great visionary, they fail to acknowledge the methods he used to achieve that persona. I guess in the end, karma prevails. He suffered for years, mostly by his own doing and now he's in the same spot we all end up when it's all said and done. In two years, Jobs will be an afterthought. Life goes on.
I think the story is a bit slanted. Having dealt with medical issues myself, yes including cancer, I do think our will has a great deal to do with our survival. And there's nothing 'strange' about fasting in and of itself, you just need to be rational about it.
That said, when it's our time it will be time. Nothing changes that.
"when it's our time it will be time. Nothing changes that"
Did you miss this sentence ... " When his pancreatic neuroendocrine tumor was first discovered in October 2003, doctors said he was lucky that it had been detected so early, and it could be removed before definitely spreading."
It's a shame he didn't heed his Doctor's advice.
"That said, when it's our time it will be time. Nothing changes that."
Does that mean you don't need to look both ways when crossing the street? After all if it is not "one's time" there is no reason to take any cautionary procedures – or to take the medical communities advice.
Does CNN employ copy editors at all? This article opens with a series of typographical and grammatical mistakes and typos.
Too many and's.
Yes we know, thanks for pointing this out, now go get a job with CNN and make it better.
Agreed! Geeze! The thought that this editor is making more than my unemployed a$$ is crazy!
Idiot.
A typographical typo?
Steve Jobs – the man with the smarts to make mountains of money, and the stupidity of not listening to his doctors. You have to be around, Steve, to spend those billions.
And I disagree with Steve where he notes, "I've done all that I can do". Horse****. He could have apologized to his first born daughter for being a complete a-whole. I hope he did make amends, and it may be that we just don't know about it. If not, Steve Jobs couldn't have been more wrong in choosing those words.
I agree, the irony of him rejecting his first born is astounding given he was adopted and born out of wedlock.
Job's ego was bigger than the Grand Canyon and it was his death.
"He thought the oxygen monitor on his finger was "ugly and too complex," and offered ideas for making the design simpler." Wow... no wonder he was so reclusive. The man is dying of cancer and he's worried about the design of the oxygen sensor on his finger. This poor man was sick in the head, not just from cancer. I really, genuinely, feel sorry for this man. RIP.
Maybe you're taking too negative a view. This is what Jobs was VERY GOOD at – the design and use of technology devices. I see this as him still showing a healthy interest in life by doing what he did well – trying to improve a technological device. BTW – he's right. Not only are they ugly but they tend to shift and fall off, creating false alarms and other problems.
I'm always fascinated by how, when someone is an avowed, life-long, unflinching pighead, it winds up getting them in the end.
LOL
hear, hear. the fawning over this guy who i didn't care about and knew little about 'til the unappealing profiles of the past week, and of apple and its unappealing profile, is disturbing. especially as it occurs by many well-to-do and potentially smart people. this guy had great marketing talent. period. he is not regarded highly on a personal level, and made numerous idiotic choices on both personal and business levels. no admiration here.
I'm tempted to dismissively say "idiot", but there's more to it than that.
Jobs lived in his own reality where his every utterance was worshipped by millions. His engineers converted others' ideas into products repackaged to Jobs' specifications, and the media responded by praising him for his leadership in innovation.
Given that, who could blame him for thinking he could end his cancer through psychic healing and veganism?
How an intelligent man, known for his work on computers, could turn his back on the best science and follow mysticism, as a means of treating cancer, is remarkable.
TL;DR Jobs was nuts.
TL;DR II Nature > human ego
Issac Newton, for all his scientific genius, was a closeted alchemist.
We've learned a thing or two since Sir Isaac Newton death 284 years ago.
Just sayin
OOOH ya, quite the Kabbalahist as well. It appears string theory, chaos theory, etc. were derived from the study of that book. That's a freaky freaky book it is. And there are some REALLY powerful groups of people who like it...
Goes to show even if you are brilliant in one field (which he certainly was), you have to take the advise of those brilliant in other fields pertaining to matters that apply to what you are NOT brilliant at.
RIP Steve
But you had to open this article, read it and make a comment????
You too sir, are a closet worshiper for Jobs
Dear CNN,
Please add a ‘Steve Jobs’ section to your site and file all Steve Jobs, and Apple articles under it. I am so efffing sick of seeing a daily barrage of this shiet.
Me too, I was in bed napping and NPR was going on about him like he was the Messiah. I had to turn it off.
........But you had to open this article, read it and make a comment????
You too sir, are a closet worshiper for Jobs...
@mjpsych. Did I say that I read the article? Don't think so. I am most certainly not a "closet worshiper for Jobs...".
It's his body, so whatever he wants, but I feel sorry for the family he left behind. I know how hard it is to watch a family member die of cancer, I can't imagine what it must be like to watch a family member die of cancer because he won't give the doctors' suggestions a try.
goes to show that people can be book smart but lact wisedom in life....here is a guy who believed in science and benefitted from and for it, but refused the best treatment available to go to mysticism? like really??? how weird is that? he could have mixed both, why not? anyways, he is dead, so there is no point debating this any more. i hope people learn that ego and smart doesnt make you immortal, it can actually accelerate your death...as they say in africa, we are all equals in death i guess...
DocPedro, I couldn't have said it better myself. I call it 'too smart for their own good.'
The line between genius and lunatic can sometimes be very, very thin. And sometimes, those people routinely cross the two.
The strangest thing about Steve Jobs is there was nothing Zen about him, despite his interest in Buddhism. He was petty and driven and could not even be good to his own employees or family. He was a person who only thought of himself and his image. There is nothing at all in his life that relates to the teaching of Buddha. He would not even met with his biological father. That is just sad and pathetic. He gave none of his wealth to charity. I can't find one thing likeable about him.
Sounds just like my Dad. Mr. Know-it-all won't listen to anybody that actually works with this stuff every day, but he'll sure try any half-baked diet idea out there written by someone he doesn't know, never met and has no qualifications whatsoever. In the 21st century, people are still getting away with peddling snake-oil while the FDA looks away. People die because they go on fad diets they read about on a "news" site that's actually just paid actors touting this product or that diet. Too bad Jobs wasn't my Dad...I'd at least have all that money to show for putting up with his lunacy.
No fad about it – he lost weight – he fasted – that isn't a diet. He was successful at losing weight if that is what he wanted to do.
The FDA "only looks away" from snake oil regulation because their hands are tied by Congressmen who are sympathetic to alternative medicine (Harkin, for example). They shepherded DSHA through Congress in the 1990s which put a muzzle on the FDA's ability to regulate and prosecute alternative medicine. So mainstream medicine is strictly regulated, but alternative practioners have free reign to claim just about anything they want.
So...long story short Steve Jobs was an idiot who refused to have a relatively simple surgery to remove cancer before it became life-threatening and instead...went on a f***ing diet.
I hope his decision to delay surgery was an INFORMED decision. I declined certain recommendations despite being stage4 but, no one could predict I chose the right path 12 years ago, the odds were stacked against me. Dealing with cancer is a minefield without maps.
It's a great loss....for his family.
In short, he ignored experts with his extreme OCD in controlling every tiny thing, and it likely caused a quicker death (if his passing was even "necessary") than it should have. He died an early death because his gargantuan ego wouldn't let him listen to others.
There was no guarantee that taking the cancer from his pancreas early would have saved his life. There could already have been a rogue cell. No one should be so judgemental to be so definate in their opinion about the choices he made. A lot of times people are smarter than there doctors that do not understand anything about nutrician. I think people should take a step back and stop making judgements on facts they don't have. Doctors many times are only extentions of drug companies that first and foremost only want to make money. I am sure Steve could have had some distrust in that system as well. After all with all of his money he could have had any treatment he wanted. He Chose. THat's all we need to know.
He lived longer than originally expected. He should have been dead in 2008, or so it was reported on another recent article about him. He was given 5 years but lived 8.
Jobs was a great man. Maybe I can meet him some time in heaven.
Yeah, I agree, I want to punch him in the mouth, too. But I'll take my doctor's advice so I won't get to meet him for a long time.
I was not a fan of Steve Jobs but I respect his right to make choices about his medical care. I work in a cancer center and see the famous and infamous daily deal with cancer but at the end of the day Jobs was human and made informed choices about the course of treatment and that was his right. His life, his choice.
Informed? Not even close. What he did was ignorant and inherently wasteful. He killed himself. End of story.
Is it possible that we are overlooking something here, perhaps Steve Jobs also suffered from Asperger's Syndrome. Given what has been reported about his lack of social skills, stinginess, infrequent bathing habits, focused genius and driven determination, it all fits that model. It will be interesting to see whether or not the book explores that area.
The problem Steve Jobs had is that he couldn't distinguish between the good things Western medicine provides (surgery, emergencies) and the things it's not as good at (over-prescription of drugs, managing chronic conditions). Western medicine excels at dealing with acute problems such as the cancer he had; since money was no problem and he was fortunate to have the rare, operable type of pancreatic cancer, he could have chosen a dream team of surgeons and been cured early on.
(Patient's) Right to Autonomy and Self Determination EXEMPLIFIED!
R.I.P. Mr. Jobs.
I thought an apple a day kept the doctor away but I guess not. The reality is that when the rich die they can't take their wealth with them and with that said, I think it would worth it to tax the rich.
Tax the rich just because they are dead? ok...
Joe the Dumber....
There is a saying that there is a fine line between sanify and insanity. Jobs was certainly on the side of insanity most of his life...a genious that killed himself slowly...too bad he didn't get psychological help...he's be alive today. Very sad man.
This man was a pioneer of technology and science, which he chose to ignore when facing cancer, and it ultimately led to his death. A little ironic. I wonder if he would have developed an "app" to cure pancreatic cancer, would he have used it?
If you think there's a cure for death, Steve will now be telling you: "There's no app for that".
Steve could honestly write "I did it my way". He did more to change the face of the world than any other human being. Who is it for us to judge what is right for another. RIP Steve Jobs.
"He did more to change the face of the world than any other human being"
Really? You live in a very sad world if you honestly believe that to be true.
Everybody who is ticked off with him not being more proactive with his cancer, actually is dearly wishing he did'nt do what he did to imself and did not die!.
Just look into your souls, you know you miss him!
What a horrific waste. To think if he'd listened to his doctors he'd probably still be around and probably cancer free.... Steve Jobs committed suicide. His death is his own ignorant fault. Ugh.
Name one person that his lived through Pamcreatic cancer – no one! Eating differently would not have saved Steve Jobs!
There are TONS of people who have survived pancreatic cancer, and Job had one of the few operable types, not to mention it was caught early. Jobs absolutely would have survived had he accepted the treatment.
Pancreatic cancer is especially hard to treat and usually inoperable, but there are lots and lots of people who have entered remission from it with proper treatments.
How about Debbie Ryan, head coach of the UVA women's basketball team? She was diagnosed in 2000 and still coaches.
The most infuriating thing is that with so many people dying while waiting on lists to receive a donated organ, this one went to someone who a) shouldn't have needed one in the first place and b) wasn't going to do the followup to care for it and himself.
$$$$$$$$$$$$ talks
This makes Jobs' death even more tragic, because it was obviously unnecessary. My mother was in denial about her own symptoms and her colon cancer eventually spread to her liver. Metastatic colon cancer is lethal and it killed her in a year. Jobs seemed to think he was smarter than his doctors and that he would fare better if he took control of his treatment. That's what killed him. Hubris. Really sad. Seems like a lot of great men suffer from it and it can be as deadly as any disease.
This is not someone to be admired or respected. Everything written about him shows he was petty, mean, and, evidently, lacking common sense.
His legacy? Tons of plastic crap made in China that has improved our lives not one iota.
He was a Manorexic!!
rest in peace my friend
even a visionary could be like a stubborn 4 yr old brat. We're all humans after all
seems he had mental problems....I have had acquaintances with same disorder, liquid diets, mentally over engaged with what they put in the body.....they fail to grasp the simplicity of God, though great beyond measure, he created the nourishment our bodies need and taking into consideration that eating is a pleasure, and him being a good God, HE PUT ALL THESE ESSENTIAL COMPONENTS INTO FOOD! not liquids retards....stop trying to outsmart your creator, you'll die prematurely
god is there just 1 person in the World that can Prove that there is indeed a god . Just a iotta of prove i say good luck because there has never been a god nor will there Ever be a God
you don't deserve an answer, but it's just a chance for me to label you as the worthless lowlife mammal that you are
So sayeth the loving theist.
Why aren't these charlatans that promise bogus treatments for everything including cancer held responsible for his death? Yes he was brilliant, but he was a medical layperson. His decisions depended on knowledge of facts, and unfortunately that knowledge was skewed by the many unproven and frankly malignant lies about alternatives to scientific based medicine, drowning out the rational options offered to him, and many others trying to come to terms with extremely terrifying news about their health. Had a physician either misdiagnosed or mistreated him, that physician would certainly be held accountable, both by his peers, the legal system, and the court of world opinion. So why then is it the patient's fault that he chose these alternatives, rather than the snake oil salesmen that offered it to him with false hopes and promises? He should have known better? Shouldn't everyone then?
Yes, everyone should know better. At the end of the day, it is the individual who is solely responsible with what type of information he exploses himself to, and how he chooses to analyze it.
ENOUGH WITH THE STEVE JOBS STORIES ALREADY !!!! JEEEZZ.
its hurt his family plus he's now gone because his ignorance was not being a doctor if he had been a genius doctor and heeded his own advice he may still be here
He should've stuck to selling fancy gadgets, and left the diagnosing and treatment to the doctors.
Who cares?
It just goes to show that you can be richer than god, but holistic medicine still won't cure you. Listen to your doctor's advice.
For all the things money can buy it still can't buy health, happiness, or common sense. These will always be the great equalizers.