HELP PLEASE! Attacks on Dr. Myhill, only doctor I found who knows how to cure CFS

So even medicine seems to have its less glamorous moments :-)

You have no idea...I consider it a great day when my scrubs don't get a bodily fluid on them =P

We are in full agreement here. More research is needed to provide more data.

Interestingly enough, Dr. Myhill proposes a test for CFS. As you see some validity in the concept of ADP/ATP imbalance, do you think that this test could provide a deeper insight into CFS? Do the following statements make scientific sense in your opinion or are they at odds with proven facts?

A Vital Test in Chronic Fatigue Syndrome

The central problem of chronic fatigue syndrome is mitochondrial failure resulting in poor production of ATP. ATP is the currency of energy in the body and if the production of this is impaired then all cellular processes will go slow. It is not good enough to measure absolute levels of ATP in cells since this will simply reflect how well rested the sufferer is. The perfect test is to measure the rate at which ATP is recycled in cells and this test has now been developed by John McLaren Howard. He calls it "ATP profiles". It is a test of mitochondrial function.

Not only does this test measure the rate at which ATP is made, it also looks at where the problem lies. Production of ATP is highly dependent on magnesium status and the first part of the test studies this aspect.

The second aspect of the test measures the efficiency with which ATP is made from ADP. If this is abnormal then this could be as a result of magnesium deficiency, of low levels of Co-enzyme Q10, low levels of vitamin B3 (NAD) or of acetyl L-carnitine.

The third possibility is that the protein which transports ATP and ADP across mitochondrial membrane is impaired and this is also measured.

The joy of the ATP profiles test is that we now have an objective test of chronic fatigue syndrome which clearly shows this illness has a physical basis.

Well, there are bits and pieces of good ideas mixed in with bits and pieces of hocus-pocus here, in my opinion. Yes, technically, measuring the turnover rate of ATP would reveal some level of information about a person's mitochondrial function. The problem, however, is how to monitor such a short-lived molecule, especially considering the wide-range of pathways that produce it that DON'T include the mitochodnria. A low level of ATP might be related to a pentose-phosphate pathway problem, a glycogen storage problem, a Cori cycle problem, etc.. Testing ATP turnover seems highly non-specific, so it's not really a reliable means of testing anything.

The other ideas seem more viable, that is, testing substrates or proteins specifically tied to mitochondrial metabolism. We have many of these tests already, as problems with these proteins have already been discovered and classified as "inherited disorders of metabolism". These aren't CFS, obviously, but that's not to say similar problems developed alter in life might not be the culprits.

reply to post by 12m8keall2c


Glad to see that you appreciate the "Beauty of the Community" brought to light in this thread :-)

ABSOLUTELY TRUE: It is a real danger that everybody "feeling tired, sad or bad in general" is labeled with CFS. That does not help the person and is very destructive for CFS research.

I never wanted a discussion about CFS, but for the sake of other sufferers, let me make this very clear: Even if this know-how has not yet arrived at every doctors practice around the world, CFS is a real physiological disease and is listed on the website of the US Department of Health and Human Services:
CDC: CFS is a serious illness and poses a dilemma for patients, their families, and health care providers.

The CDC also lists the symptoms of CFS.

Unfortunately "low grade fever" is missing from the CDC's list of symptoms. Therefore one must also use Merck's Diagnostic Criteria for Chronic Fatigue Syndrome .

If a person has the symptoms as defined by the CDC and Merck then it is possibly CFS. In this case further tests should be done. I recommend testing the T4/T8 ratio and regulation of blood pressure when getting up. Also this test could be of value (see ongoing discussion).

On the other hand, if you got in a fight with your spouse, got drunk and now feel depressed and have memory loss, then NO, this is not CFS :-) Take a walk in fresh air, apologize to your spouse and get over it.

Originally posted by VneZonyDostupa
You have no idea...I consider it a great day when my scrubs don't get a bodily fluid on them =P

LOL! You almost sound a bit like Perry Cox from the TV series Scrubs :-)

Well, there are bits and pieces of good ideas mixed in with bits and pieces of hocus-pocus here, in my opinion. Yes, technically, measuring the turnover rate of ATP would reveal some level of information about a person's mitochondrial function. The problem, however, is how to monitor such a short-lived molecule, especially considering the wide-range of pathways that produce it that DON'T include the mitochodnria. A low level of ATP might be related to a pentose-phosphate pathway problem, a glycogen storage problem, a Cori cycle problem, etc.. Testing ATP turnover seems highly non-specific, so it's not really a reliable means of testing anything.

The other ideas seem more viable, that is, testing substrates or proteins specifically tied to mitochondrial metabolism. We have many of these tests already, as problems with these proteins have already been discovered and classified as "inherited disorders of metabolism". These aren't CFS, obviously, but that's not to say similar problems developed alter in life might not be the culprits.

Thanks again for sharing your knowledge! So it seems that the "ATP Profile" test developed by Dr John McLaren Howard (with Dr Myhill) may be on to something, but is not a proven standard method.

What I can confirm from my personal case history is that CFS probably requires a genetic predisposition, which seems to only go from mother to children, not from the father. So "inherited disorders of metabolism" may well be a part of the puzzle.

I can only hope that research goes on and that the case of Dr Myhill comes to a good end. I think she has something to contribute that should not be completely dismissed.

I for myself am very happy about having found a solution for my health problem and will conclude here with a few links:

EBook (PDF) on CFS by Dr Myhill

Huge index of CFS links

GDC's full verdict against Dr Myhill
(CFS is not even mentioned. The dispute seems to concern only other treatments/recommendations with which I am not familiar.)

If the condition is truly an inborn error of metabolism tied to a defect in a protein/gene of mitochondrial origin, then yes, I would agree that a maternal inheritance pattern would make sense.

I wish you only the best in your continued treatment. One thing you can do, also, is look online for any clinical trials/studies that are being performed on CFS. Often, people like yourself can donate blood samples, DNA, or even just some of your time for an interview to help researchers understand the condition a bit better. Who knows, maybe you've got a critical bit of information locked away in your genome!

Oh, and you're not the first to make the Dr. Cox impression. I like to teach through "tough love" in the hospital =) I'll leave it at that, haha.