I want to cure a disorder. Help?

zoobyshoe

It's been done so, conceivably, it could be done again:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lorenzo's_Oil

The Odones were not medical researchers, but they were highly intelligent and extremely motivated people.

Ryan_m_b

Interesting story, to be fair they did work with other scientists such as Hugo Moser and Bill Rizzo but according to wikipedia at least it was Mr Odone's idea after hearing about Rizzo's research in a similar field to use the oil they eventually named Lorenzo's Oil. Also to be clear Lorenzo's oil seems to delay the onset and severeity of symptoms but does not actually stop the disease progressing and is not a cure. Commendable work and committment though either way.

JDStupi

I mean, I'm not hear to completely call you out, but what exactly were you dosed with and how much? ... I am just reluctant to believe that being dosed once would lead to HPPD, unless it was pretty serious. Admittedly, I am no expert and it only seems "fishy" to me that a disorder that has such an extremely low prevalence would become apparent after one time with a psychedelic. Also, to what extent do you have HPPD? How intense are your visual aberrations and how often do they come? Is it accompanied by general anxiety or panic attacks as well?

MrDocat

Guys, I need your help again. I've been browsing though medicine programs on local universities and this is probably not what I want, too. The chemistry/math content there is almost 0; which are, along with other disciplines, I guess, necessary to understand a disease like HPPD. Also, those programs are actually focused on becoming a doctor and serving on brazilian's hospitals. This is not my goal.

I could forget school at all and study at home. This way I could focus on my goal. But I guess a degree is necessary to do research, is not it? Yet, will a brazilian's diploma on medicine really give me respect to do whatever kind of research I need anyway? I'm not sure. Maybe the programs on my country are not what I'm looking for. So again, what do I do? :/

JDStupi I know, I was surprised too, but it is real. I can describe clearly and even draw what is different on my vision, and it is not very hard to understand, too. Just imagine your vision with a plenty of photoshop/cinema effects *always* turned on. This is it. Those effects include auras, trails, lights being brighter and broader than normal, prolonged positive and negative afterimages, doubled vision. Others describe also color shifts, "breathing" surfaces, tunnel vision, visual snow. Mental health is not the same. Know that mental fadigue you get from bad sleep? I feel that slightly all day, and am never fully restored. I'm not sure what anxiety and panic attacks *actually* are, but on the first weeks I woke up middle night several times with a very weird, hard to describe and scary trippy sensations. It was the only thing that improved.

apeiron

If your ambitions are serious, you seem to be in the wrong place.

There is a board devoted to the condition - http://hppdonline.com/

They are discussing approaches to cures in what seems sensible fashion. Such a board - much more importantly - can draw attention to the condition as something needing study.

It might take you 10 years even to start to contribute something useful by way of research. But through the collective effort of a board, you can start to do something immediately, while also getting on with your own life/career.

In the meantime, this was interesting speculation about how the condition could even arise...

http://hppdonline.com/index.php?/top...onepigenetics/

xxChrisxx

Right this thread needs a dose of reality. OP stop being totally unrealistic.
You, by yourself cannot realistically solve your own problem.

This is biology, biochemistry, pharmacology and clinical science, plus many more supporting areas. So basically more depth than one man is reasonable capable of being an expert at. (Hint: This is why scores of people are involved in this sort of thing).

No, you need a lab, reputation and lots of money.

Of course not, you don't get a degree than get funding to do whatever you want. You have to sit and do what people tell you to do. You could get a place on a team researching this already.

It's is total lunacy to think you'd even stand a remote chance of solving this by yourself. It's doubly damaging to think about stopping a prospective career to pursue a hopelessly un-achievable goal.

I've highlighted some words above, what you CAN realistically do is raise money and awareness of the condition. You can even be a subject in existing tests and subsequent trials if you are that way inclined. I'm assuming any 'cure' you'd have made on your own would be tested on your good self anyway. So you can't be that averse to idea.

mariexotoni

I think you should talk to some professors

russ_watters

Rent the movie "Extraordinary Measures".

Most of the advice you were given was misguided IMO (not that your idea was realistic...), but Chris hit the nail on the head: Nobody does research on their own and nobody does it without someone else giving them the money to pay them and the other researchers and do the work (and buy the equipment, lease the lab space, etc). Essentially, you need to be the CEO of your own pharmaceutical company to really make something happen.

In the movie (and in the real life event), there was a professor/researcher doing work on Pompe's disease, but it was floundering because no one was interested in developing the research. So you could be that guy and maybe you'd get lucky and have some success and have someone fund your research, but maybe not. Enter the protagonist, who happened to be an executive at Bristol Myers, who had the management experience required to start his own pharma company. But you can't just go start your own pharma company. As said, you need money and that comes from venture capital. Unfortunately, venture capitalists will only throw a hundred million dollars at a 22 year old if they are trying to start an internet company. So the only realistic way for you to do this is to get a handful of degrees in useful fields for management, such as business and law, then go have a career at an existing pharmaceutical company to gain the clout necessary for venture capitalists to even accept an appointment with you to hear your proposal. Then you can start your company and hire people to do your research.

This is a bare minimum of a 20 year commitment, but there is no guarantee that even if you do everything right you'll ever find a cure for your condition. Are you really up for that?