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Evidence-based medicine
Many times in the past, people have said that certain things were impossible. Luckily, the most imaginative people do not listen to this. Some of these are quiet, scholarly scientists who work patiently towards their goal, but others are showmen, radiating their brilliance to all who will listen. One of these showmen was Albert Crewe. Ignoring all those who said that humans would never be able to make an image of an individual atom, he published a paper in 1970 that paraphrased, said practically nothing more than, "Here is my image of an single atom.". Another of these showmen is Dr. Craig Venter (link 1). On the 4th September 2007, he published the first complete genome of an individual human, his own. Just 3 months later, he gave the annual Richard Dimbleby Lecture on BBC One. The transcript is on link 2.
In his lecture, he says " Simply asking what is the evidence behind any claim is a marked contrast to approaching life only upon a faith-based system.". The Association follows this idea, any treatment considered for ITP is based on evidence. The idea is not new of course, Leonardo da Vinci saw this in the 15th Century, he wrote "First I shall test by experiment before I proceed farther, because my intention is to consult experience first and then with reasoning show why such experience is bound to operate in such a way. And this is the true rule by which those who analyse the effects of nature must proceed; and although nature begins with the cause and ends with experience, we must follow the opposite course namely, begin with experience, and by means of it investigate the cause."
In modern times, such ideas have been codified by several people. Perhaps the best example is a scientist of the quiet, scholarly type, Dr. Archie Cochrane, a Scot born in 1909, link 4. Apart from his work on chest diseases, he was a pioneer of evidence-based medicine (link 6). This uses principles such as scientific rigour and the avoidance of conflict of interest and work is reinforced by extensive peer review. Research conducted under his principles is more likely to lead to reliable conclusions that the ad-hoc anecdotal means used by the less scrupulous. He outlined these principles in his book, Effectiveness and Efficiency, link 8.
On a page entitled "Getting to grips with Archie Cochrane's agenda" (link 7), is one idea that sprang from his work, that all randomised controlled trials should be registered and reported.
The Cochrane Collaboration works towards this end and is named after him, it is a body that was set up to "produce systematic assessments of healthcare interventions". Link 5.
In chronic conditions such as ITP, it is easy for charlatans to cash in on the variable nature of disease. They sell their generally expensive but ineffective potions and should a patient improve, they claim the credit. If not, their treatment is "not tuned to the patient", naturally leading to more sales. Eventually a natural if temporary improvement takes place, for which all credit is taken. Failures are ignored. Archie Cochrane will be turning in his grave.
Happy Surfing.
Howard
Links
1: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Craig_Venter
2: www.bbc.co.uk/pressoffice/pressreleases/stories/2007/12_december/05/dimbleby.shtml
3: physicsworld.com/cws/article/news/9639
4: www.cardiff.ac.uk/insrv/libraries/scolar/archives/cochrane/index.html
6: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Evidence-based_medicine
7: www.bmj.com/cgi/pdf_extract/305/6857/786 (This is from the British Medical Journal, You can register free of charge on their site to read more than is available in general)