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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Aug. 29, 2001)
inion THE BATTALION orth the sweat? ore in-depth physicals needed for student athletes gram is la d make rel mid the hottest days .of summer, tudent athletes cross the nation are a6t icing to prepare leiliselves for the pcoming season. Vhile this is not unusu^ 1, it can have deadly results. Student ^Htes in Texas are required i<> ndergo a routine physical by a family ^Rhool-appointed physician before V are permitted to participate in hy athletic activities. hese physicals include questions boiit heart problems. Yet, in light of ec|nt deaths of high school football lasers, it is obvious that these XEtns are not adequate. With the eat and strenuous activity, the bod- "ftnd hearts of these athletes are trained to the max. more in-depth physical, includ- g electrocardiography (EKG) to st the functions of the heart, should je given to the athletes before they ^relallowed to participate. Schools nd families should spare no expense make sure that their young athletes it to handle the workouts associ- ted with sports. nleonard Carter II was a 14-year- ld football player for Lamar High cllool in Houston. He died Aug. 18 fter he collapsed on the practice eld. The cause of his death was not eai related but instead, hypertrophic ardiomyopathy, which is an asymme- [of the heart muscles. According to ■Albert Hergenroeder, chief of the bi ts medicine clinic at Texas ire Children’s Hospital, “the leading cause of death among young athletes during exercise is a cardiac condi tion.” Knowing that fact, parents and school officials should find a solution to this problem. If it warrants more expensive medical tests, then schools and parents should pay for the tests. They will then be able to rest with the knowledge that they have done every thing possible to ensure the safety of their student athletes. The type of heart condition Carter had is not easily detected, but with an EKG, his problem could have been discovered. Students are asked specific questions during their physical about possible conditions they could have. According to Dr. Hergenroeder, stu dents can answer “no” to both ques- Schools and families should spare no expense to make sure their young athletes are fit to handle the workouts associated with sports. tions [during the physical] and still suffer from the potentially fatal condi tion. There are other types of cardiac problems, such as arrhythmia and peri carditis, that also can be found with an EKG and could potentially save the life of a young athlete. Officials are ignoring the fact that an undetected problems could cause athletes to col lapse at any moment — as Carter did r— by not requiring these tests prior to practice. The University Interscholastic League (UIL), the governing organization for high school athletics in Texas, has formed a medical advisory com mittee. The committee will consist of five physi cians, two athletic trainers and one representative of the Texas High School Coaches Association. The committee’s recommen dations will be added to current UIL mate rials. The ability ol the com mittee to protect the safety of student athletes should not be hin dered by mere recommendations. If the committee is able to find a solution to help detect these heart problems, they should not stop at suggestions. According to Carol Christian, a staff writer for the Houston Chronicle, “In the past decade, a number of other athletes — from high school to professional — have died with enlarged hearts.” The list of athletes who have died includes Texas A&M foot ball player James Glenn, who died in 1991 with an enlarged heart — a condition that although he may have been born with but not properly diagnosed in his physical. If there are tests to prevent these tragedies, all athleteg. should be required tb undergo them. With current advanced medical knowledge and tech nology, many of these deaths can and should be prevented, school offi cials and parents should make sure that student athletes do not have an undiagnosed problem. These tests should be done, and those involved should be certain that athletes are physically prepared for the strenuous activities they participate in. Brieanne Porter is a junior political science major. ov. Perry’s welcome would like to welcome you to one of Texas' premiere universities. As ybu may know, Texas A&M is very close to my heart, having graduated from there nearly 30 years ago. As a former student, I see the Aggie spirit at work every day in both my pjjersonal and professional lives. Let me say that your stay at A&M undoubtedly will present many new challenges, but it also will afford you many opportunities in return. pAggieland is an amazing place of Unparalleled spirit and unrivaled tra dition. You may not realize it right w; you may not even want to con- mplate it, but 20 or 30 years down e road, you will see how blessed u have been to attend a great insti- tion such as Texas A&M. You will e the difference it will make in your uality of life and in providing you ireater opportunity and freedom. As you begin your journey toward opportunity, I encourage you to - ""' make the most of your years here at Texas A&M. Study hard, get ; involved, explore the world, expand your minds and have fun. •f And remember that education is I the catalyst between potential and ^1 Success. With your continuing f B ■ I effort to build yourself academical ly and morally, you lay the founda- ■ ■1 tion for future professional and . personal success. I: I wish you the best over the next four years in Aggieland and in all of our future endeavors. i/e jrsto s. will Gov. Rick Perry '72 MAIL CALL In Rowan’s defense In response to Rolando Garcia's Aug. 28th article. It should be mentioned that the drinking age is lower (18) in Italy than it is here in the USA (21). When on Italian grounds, anyone 18 and older is allowed, by law, to drink alcoholic beverages. The use of the word "minor” is some what misleading in the article because technically, the fresh men were not. Taking for granted that all the freshmen were over the age of 18, there was nothing legally wrong with what they did in Italy. Travis Strow '02 EDITOR’S NOTE: Despite the legal drinking age in Italy, Appendix VIII of the Texas A&M Student rules states, "Any situation sponsored, authorized, sanctioned, endorsed and/or financed by an undergradu ate student organization must be in compliance with any applicable laws and rules of the state, county, city and Texas A&M University. ... A student found guilty of noncompli ance with these rules or the laws of the state of Texas has committed a violation of University Student Rules and is subject to sanctions commensurate with the offense and any aggravating and mitigating circumstances. ” iffp ‘v ipiiillfll I ilSli Get off the stem cell research bandwagon In response to Tim DylTs Aug. 28th column. Tim Dyll is on the stem cell research bandwagon, but his band is playing a funeral dirge. He cites the potential, undiscovered, possi ble, unknown benefits of stem cell research as justification for the wholesale destruction of human embryos. Since they are "slated for destruction" anyway, he argues, why not use them for this as-yet-unproven benefit to society? Well, Mr. Dyll, since you are ulti mately going to die anyway, we’ll just euthanize you (without your consent, of course) and give your body to science. There are proven uses for your body, after all; for example, we know that we can use many of your internal organs to help people in need of transplants. Mr. Dyll and others of his persua sion have lost sight of the fact that human life is not a commodity to be bought and sold. Human beings are “endowed by their Creator with cer tain inalienable rights,” the foremost of which is the right to Life. For the sake of our nation and our world, for the greatest long-term benefit to society, we must never lose sight of that fact. Jon Gardner '89 THE Rl |illions of people fearfully drea< thought of one day being diagnosed Iwith one of the world’s deadliest diseases — cancer. While medical advancements in the ongoing battle to defeat this horrendous ill ness are showing significant progress, Americans were shocked to hear that Robert Courtney, a pharmacist in Missouri, was arrested and charged with diluting the dosage of two forms of chemotherapy drugs to levels far below those pre scribed by doctors. Tragically, his incentive in weakening the drugs was so that he could increase the profitability of his privately owned pharmacy. Meanwhile, Courtney remains jailed without bond, the extent of the irreparable damage he caused his patients has eroded the precious trust that was once placed within the medical profession. Although typically regarded as a vicious-painstak- CARTOON OF THE DAY TVis 0Vi<J^Rt6£>N'\vf- Old Battalion email accounts are no longer used. Submissions and communication must be made to thebatt.com accounts. The Battalion encourages letters to the editor. Letters must be 300 words or less and include the author’s name, class and phone number. The opinion editor reserves the right to edit letters for length, style and accuracy. Letters may be submitted in person at 014 Reed McDonald with a valid student ID. Letters also may be mailed to: The Battalion — Mail Call 1111 TAMU • 014 Reed McDonald College Station, TX 77843-1111 Fax: (979) 845-2647 Email: opinion@thebatt.com Mail Call: mailcall@thebatt.com ing form of treat ment for millions of victims and survivors of can cer, chemotherapy treatment is often an unfortunate necessity to defeat this potentially life claiming illness. According to The Associated Press, the handling and mix ing of these chemotherapy drugs, which are intended to kill human cells, was at one time a process that was handled by Kansas City nurses. However, their fear of having to handle such a deadly drug, gave private pharmacies in the region the opportunity to provide doctors with ready-to-use. premixed chemotherapy compounds. Ironically, Courtney once was hailed as a pioneer in his field after becoming one of the first pharmacists in his area to perform such a task. Now, he has placed hundreds of innocent victims who received these drugs from his pharmacy in serious danger. According to Dr. Jack Rosenburg, direc tor of the International Drug Information Center at New York’s Long Island University, what is even more troubling is that, depending on the degree of dilution, “instead of killing the cancer, you get a par tial kill of the cells and then a more resist ant type of cancer coming out.” Patients Tragically his incentive in weakening the drugs was so that he could increase the profitihility of his privately owned pharmacy. who were vigorously waging a battle for their lives by having chemotherapy admin istered to them, can now potentially be faced with more serious complications because of Courtney’s violations of the law. Investigators with the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) contend that samples they obtained of the expensive chemothera py drugs were diluted to levels anywhere from 39 percent to as low as 1 percent, which resulted in Courtney saving hundreds of dollars per dose. According to CNN, the investigators accidentally discovered this alarming evidence after a sales representa tive for Eli Lilly and Company, maker of the high-priced chemotherapy drug Gemzar, stumbled across a discrepancy between the amount Courtney had purchased and the amount he had supposedly provided and billed Kansas City physicians. Courtney has destroyed the intentions of working as a health-care provider entirely and has since been stripped of his state and federal pharmaceutical licenses. Several medical professionals in the field were astounded at the news of these fla grant ethical and moral violations. Dr. Michael Coyne, associate vice pres ident and director of pharmacology at New York’s Staten Island University Hospital said that, “everyone — all of my colleagues — were shocked.” Even the most devious pharmacist in the country could not dream this one up.” Patrick Mclnerney, an attorney with the Kansas City Internal Medicine clinic, agrees that Courtney’s actions were hard to believe. “It is draining. For many of these doctors, staffs and nurses, fighting cancer is their life’s work. They have lived and grieved and fought for their patients.” Hopefully, if and when prosecutors pre vail in convicting Courtney of the 20 felony counts he has been charged with, his legacy should undoubtedly be remem bered as one that is along the same lines as a greedy murderer. Although it might be too late to change the circumstances of Courtney’s cowardly actions or bring back to life those who died, something should be done to ensure that similar crimes never happen again. /.J. Trevino is a senior journalism major.