Osler's Web: Inside the Labyrinth of the Chronic Fatigue Syndrome Epidemic

This book really gives you an understanding of how and why ME has been stigmatized, ridiculed and ignored as much as it has. It makes it very clear that it was not a mistake or an oversight at all but that it was in fact utterly deliberate. The pure stupidity and lack of basic human compassion involved is astounding. It's important to know how we've ended up in this mess so we can see how we might get ourselves out I think. It's also important that we not underestimate how low these people will go - its lower than you could even imagine. A must read if you are well enough to tackle such a long non-fiction book, it'll just blow your mind and really fire you up about how badly we have all been treated historically and the...well you'd have to call them evil, people behind it all. A fantastic book to fire up your activism urges.

The author does an outstanding job of revealing how some of our most "respected" agencies in western medicine attempt to deal with what they can not define, despite what the patient says. Through constant shifts in focus, we are shown how several different groups deal with this syndrome. The writings illicit a tremendous amount of rage at the incompetence, pain at the ignorance, and confusion in the beurocratic anchors. This book reads like a mystery, and keeps you intrigued until the last page. It concludes like the reality of the search for this anomoly- with no 'pat' answers.

This chronicle of the history of CFIDS is fascinating. There are are better books about what CFIDS is, what it's like to live with it, and what to do about it. The strength of Osler's Web lies in what Johnson has to say about the politics of disease and science. As the wife of a scientist and the daughter of another (and a PWC), I found her highly detailed description of the scientific community to be sadly credible. A lot has happened with regard to CFIDS research since the book was published and I'd love to see an update. What does Johnson make of recent scandals at the CDC, for example, or what does she know about the projects being funded through the NIH? This is good, basic reading for anyone interested in CFIDS and in the dynamics of scientific inquiry.

This masterful book should be mandatory reading for every doctor and patient. The National CFIDS Foundation, Inc. recommends it to this day. It is unequaled for its accuracy and both those in the medical profession as well as patients will have a better understanding of this ill-named disease.

Hillary Johnson does a masterful job of documenting the illness and its history at a level understandable by the lay public, yet it is detailed enough to satisfy the medical audience. This book is a meticulously researched and exposes some of the worst science has to offer and the best in patients and medical researchers. As an epidemiologist, I knew little about CFIDS before reading this book. After reading it, I am truly amazed (yet again) at how politics can corrupt and intrude into the scientific process. I highly recommend this book!