Chapter 6/4

Side Effects

The DIALECTIC of medications tells us that we must always consider side-effects, or as it might be called, “the law of unintended or unforeseen consequences.” This law states that often there are unexpected but logical consequences to our decisions and actions. We can almost say that we should always expect the unexpected, never be surprised by surprises.

All medications have side-effects. Some of these are positive, some are negative (usually when we speak of side-effects we are thinking of the negative). Some depend on other factors whether they work good or ill. Aspirin, for instance, is taken for relief of minor aches and pains. It also thins the blood, in some people, dangerously so. However, it is commonly prescribed, not for aches and pains, but specifically to thin the blood as a precaution against stroke.

Cancer is a particularly tricky illness to deal with. Radiation and chemotherapy (treatment with “poison”) have saved or prolonged many lives, but there is no guarantee. Side effects are almost guaranteed (although I have had two friends who took chemo with no apparent side-effects at all). With cancer treatment, the side-effects can be so serious that some prefer to take their risks or accept death rather than endure the misery of the side-effects of radiation or chemo. This is so with many medications. On one hand they are, or may be, salutary, but on the other hand they may have unintended consequences that cause some of us to forego the medicine, preferring to live with our problems, however severe they may be.