Okay I have a character that needs to have a terminal illness that requires expensive treatment that keeps him alive for ten years, and he stays mobile and in good shape, and then things degrade quickly at the end. I need him to be well enough to fly airplanes up to the end. What does he have?
Terminal illnesses
- Thread starter Al X.
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Any number of cancers might fit this profile. Many can be treated, controlled, beaten back, for many years, but can return in an untreatable way later.
caw
caw
I am not in the medical field so take it with many grains of salt, but the first thing I thought of was HIV. The cocktail has proved effective since the mid-90s but is expensive. Some strains of the virus have become resistant to some of the medications so that could be how he worsens. https://www.hiv.gov/hiv-basics/staying-in-hiv-care/hiv-treatment/hiv-treatment-overview
Another option is that he has received an organ transplant and is on anti-rejection drugs. These suppress his immune system so he contracts something else, or whatever caused the organ failure reoccurs. https://www.kidney.org/atoz/content/immuno
Another option is that he has received an organ transplant and is on anti-rejection drugs. These suppress his immune system so he contracts something else, or whatever caused the organ failure reoccurs. https://www.kidney.org/atoz/content/immuno
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Seconding cancer. My MIL had a rare form of blood cancer that was supposed to take her out within 5 years or so, but she lived at least 15 years after her diagnosis and was lucid to the end.
Blessings,
Siri Kirpal
Seconding cancer. My MIL had a rare form of blood cancer that was supposed to take her out within 5 years or so, but she lived at least 15 years after her diagnosis and was lucid to the end.
Blessings,
Siri Kirpal
Pilots on commercial airliners undergo regular health checks and wouldn't be allowed to fly if they fail the health check. I don't know what medical conditions would make them fail, you'd have to research whether he'd be allowed to fly with that particular illness (there must be a published list of the rules somewhere). If he's flying is own private plane it might be different but I'd be very worried if there wasn't some kind of checking system in place, similar to how certain medical conditions mean you have to hand in your driving license.
I agree that cancer fits the bill for your description though as I said you'd need to check the medical regulations for pilots.
Regarding being mobile and seeming healthy, the cancer itself may not prevent him from doing various things until close to the end but the treatment (chemo, etc) can be very debilitating. The chemo drugs may prohibit him from flying planes (very strict rules about what pilots can and can't take and still fly a plane). You'd have to fit in phases of undergoing chemo in between when he has to do physical action stuff, fly planes etc.
I think the organ transplant scenario (as suggested above) would fit your story better. He would be very fit and active but still need to take the anti-rejection drugs and various other drugs, but would risk suddenly getting very ill and dying from an infection, as the anti-rejection drugs suppress the immune system. Antibiotics would take care of most bacterial infections but a bad viral infection or an antibiotic-resistant bacteria could kill him. My 2nd cousin had organ transplants and died of flu. People who've had donor organs can't have vaccines and rely on herd immunity and staying away from ill people. In the UK their family would get free flu vaccines on the NHS in order to protect them.
I can't really comment on whether any of the above treatments would be expensive enough for your story as they'd all be paid for on the NHS in Britain, though I'm pretty sure cancer treatment would be. As long as your story's not set in Britain that's not an issue, though I think you'd need to have a reason why the insurance company doesn't fund it (not sure how this works to be honest, so maybe it's easy to find a reason).
I agree that cancer fits the bill for your description though as I said you'd need to check the medical regulations for pilots.
Regarding being mobile and seeming healthy, the cancer itself may not prevent him from doing various things until close to the end but the treatment (chemo, etc) can be very debilitating. The chemo drugs may prohibit him from flying planes (very strict rules about what pilots can and can't take and still fly a plane). You'd have to fit in phases of undergoing chemo in between when he has to do physical action stuff, fly planes etc.
I think the organ transplant scenario (as suggested above) would fit your story better. He would be very fit and active but still need to take the anti-rejection drugs and various other drugs, but would risk suddenly getting very ill and dying from an infection, as the anti-rejection drugs suppress the immune system. Antibiotics would take care of most bacterial infections but a bad viral infection or an antibiotic-resistant bacteria could kill him. My 2nd cousin had organ transplants and died of flu. People who've had donor organs can't have vaccines and rely on herd immunity and staying away from ill people. In the UK their family would get free flu vaccines on the NHS in order to protect them.
I can't really comment on whether any of the above treatments would be expensive enough for your story as they'd all be paid for on the NHS in Britain, though I'm pretty sure cancer treatment would be. As long as your story's not set in Britain that's not an issue, though I think you'd need to have a reason why the insurance company doesn't fund it (not sure how this works to be honest, so maybe it's easy to find a reason).
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Multiple sclerosis can progress over the course of years, but I don't know how common it is for someone to remain in decent health and then progress as quickly as you'd like your character to. However, I think Blacbird's suggestion of cancer is more believable, and variable enough that you could get away with it easier.
Yes, I'm very familiar with the medical clearance process (at least in the US.) He's an American citizen with no health insurance (and this is ten years earlier by the way.) He's basically fleeing to a third world country for cheap, private treatment and flies charter for a third world carrier. I need to need him to have a reason to sacrifice himself otherwise needlessly on a final mission.
I might kick the organ transplant thing around, but I'm not sure that' quite going to fit my bill.
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Do you mean, he's NOT the one flying the plane, but he's flying ON a plane? In that case, cancer works just fine. My MIL flew all over the world during the years she had cancer.
Blessings,
Siri Kirpal
Do you mean, he's NOT the one flying the plane, but he's flying ON a plane? In that case, cancer works just fine. My MIL flew all over the world during the years she had cancer.
Blessings,
Siri Kirpal
No, he doesn't need to be in perfect running order, but he has to be able to fly it. We're talking small piston single, nothing terribly complex.
Give him a bone marrow transplant (used for a number of cancers) very expensive. Then he does fine for years but eventually develops graft vs host disease.