Email From Gary Aden to Gary Aden
Email Dated 11/1/1999


Subject: GENETICALLY TRANSMITTED COLON CANCER

To: ALL GENETICALLY RELATED RELATIVES OF LLOYD G. ADEN(1902-1977),
ESPECIALLY MALES

     This note is prompted by a lay article in the Tuesday, Sept. 7,1999
edition of the Wall Street Journal entitled "Drug Firms Try to Put New
Arthritis Medicine to Use Battling Cancer", page 1, column 1(a partial
xerox copy of this article is enclosed). It is not intended to alarm any
of you and I don't want  to hear that someone has developed full-blown
hypochondriasis and believes that every belly-ache signals cancer.
However, you should file this memo and also make a copy for your
physician's medical record. He can best advise you on any future course
of action relevant to diagnosis, prevention and treatment. Those of you
wishing to learn more may consult the resources of the public library or
the World Wide Web.

     As I ushered Uncle Lloyd G. Aden through a period when he underwent
resection of a Grade 2(low grade) annular, adenocarcinoma of the cecum
classified as a Duke's Type B2, I felt obliged to make this information
available to you. I'm certain that Uncle Lloyd would be eager for you to
know about his medical history  for your own benefit, as he was a
pioneer  donor in the Organ Donor Program upon his death and wanted to
do what he could to make other peoples' lives easier and better.
Unhappily, in spite of no evidence of metastases, he received only about
16-17 months of remission before a florid, gross, generalized
carcinomatosis took his life.

     As the family medical history is rather incomplete and
undocumented, no definitive statement can be made regarding the extent
of the disease in his ancestors. One of his four paternal uncles(Hobbo)
died in middle age of 'appendicitis" in an era and locale where terminal
abdominal pains were commonly so diagnosed(or misdiagnosed). His mother
allegedly died of "cancer of the stomach". He and two male siblings
suffered from duodenal ulcer disease(recent medical literature has
suggested an intergenerational link between duodenal ulcer and gastric
cancer). However, none of his siblings which additionally included one
female developed cancer of the gastrointestinal tract. 

     You should pass this message on to your descendants. Best wishes
and loving regards.

      Gary C. Aden, M.D.