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What Major Chronic Fatigue Syndrome Breakthroughs Mean to You

By , About.com GuideMay 30, 2009

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The new breakthroughs in chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS or ME/CFS) research could have a massive impact on everyone this this disease and related illnesses. (Read Chronic Fatigue Syndrome Cause, Mechanism & Diagnostic Test Discovered, Researchers Say.) What does it give us?

  • First, the better understanding of the causes and mechanisms of ME/CFS legitimizes the illness, and because it points to an underlying pathology, elevates it to "disease" status.
  • Second, it will open up new avenues for treatment and management.
  • Third, it greatly increases the possibility of a cure.
  • Fourth, it could lead to preventative measures for those who may be susceptible, such as our children.

Of course, more studies will need to confirm these findings before they become widely accepted by the medical community, but it all has to start with a breakthrough of this kind.

What do you think -- is this the breakthrough millions of people have been waiting for? Will this help researchers pinpoint effective treatments? Is this the beginning of a new era? Or is this another source of false hope in a long string of them? Leave a comment below with your opinion!

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Comments
May 30, 2009 at 6:14 am
(1) Andrea Martell says:

I think it’s bad science. This research has not been published in a peer review journal. It has not been replicated and duplicated by independent researchers who are then also published. So his hypothesis has not been proven, not by a long shot.

Because of this, the test is bogus. I’m not saying we need to throw the baby out with the bathwater.

Just that caution, and more research is needed before any jury declares on this subject.

It’s a beginning, that is all. To say anything more is a total misunderstanding of the scientific method and research itself.

May 31, 2009 at 7:22 am
(2) Michelle Martin says:

I agree with the above comments. This research is no breakthrough, and continuing to publicize it as such is only causing further harm to sufferers of CFS/ME by suggesting the immense problem is well on the way to being solve. It is not. The problem remains, and CFS/ME sufferers continue mistreated and marginalized. Much more research of the kind mentioned above (peer-reviewed, credible) needs to be done.

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