VIPatients – Very Important Patients

Much controversy surrounds the possible role of cellular telephones in the etiology of brain tumors.  One approach to the problem might be an analysis of cancer trends before and following the current wave of mass-usage of cell phones during the early 1990’s     The obituaries of famous persons, a fairly homogeneous population, was used to examine the relative contribution of brain cancer to mortality statistics during this period.   An interactive website, www.VIPatients.com follows the diseases and deaths of all V.I.P’s.   As of October, 2009, the site contains 13,500 famous ‘patients’ – of whom 235 were known to have suffered from brain tumors.   The following graph depicts trends in brain tumors during the period before – and during – the era of cellular telephones.  Since the number of famous persons who die grows constantly, data were analyzed to show the relative contribution of brain tumors to death, and to cancer death as a whole.  These data fail to show any evidence of increasing brain tumor incidence.

As of this week 2,999 famous persons (VIP’s) have died of cancer. The tumor type  was recorded in 2,124 cases – of which brain cancer accounted for 230 (10.8%).  Thus, Senator Edward Kennedy joins a growing list of VIP’s with this disease.  Other victims have included:

• Movie people:  Pamela Britton, Susan Hayward, Arthur Kennedy, Pola Negri, Ann Pennington, Zachary Scott, Alexis Smith, Francois Truffaut and Bobby Vann
• World leaders:  Claire Booth Luce, Mo Mowlam and Sir Thomas Raffles
• Music greats:  William “Cat” Anderson, Sergio Franchi, George Gershwin, Johnnie Mercer, Ethel Merman, Lou Rawls and Barnard “Buddy” Rich
• Sports personalities:   Bobby Bonds, Milt Davis, Dick Howser, Walter Johnson, Tommy Jones, Wayne Maki and Pete Rozelle.
• Authors:  John Galsworthy, Thor Heyerdahl, Chaim Potok and Mary Shelly.

The complete list is available at www.VIPatients.com – an interactive site that follows all of the diseases and deaths … of all famous persons, in real time.  Users can access the medical history of a single “VIP” or generate a list based on disease and or profession.

Today, May 23, former South Korean President Roh Moo-hyun jumped to his death.

The only other world leader known to have committed suicide in this way was Chechoslovakian President, Jan Masaryk (1948) – though many believe that he was actually murdered.

Throughout history, 538 world leaders have been murdered; but only 68 have commited suicide (only 0.58% of all deaths in this group).  In other words, the ratio of murders to suicides is eight-to-one.

Details are given for 49 suicides in this particular “profession” - the preferred method being gunshot (20 cases).  Eight others died of drug overdose, six using knives or other sharp objects, and five by hanging.

Among the more bizarre methods used, Roman Ruler Cato the Younger (died 44 B.C.E.) killed himself by pulling his intestines out through a battle injury; while Cleopatra VII (30 B.C.E.) is said to have exposed herself to the bite of an asp.  Four additional Roman rulers of the period committed “suicide by proxy” – having themselves killed by servants.

A single ruler, Ludwig II of Bavaria, has the dubious distinction of being the only world leader to drown himself (in 1886).

A comprehensive, interactive source for all diseases and deaths – in  all famous persons – is available at www.VIPatients.com

These lists are from www.VIPatients.com, an interactive website that follows the diseases and deaths of all famous persons.  Lists include famous animals, singers, politicians, sports heroes, movie stars, serial killers … over 13,000 to date.   Users can access the medical history of a single person; or generate a list based on disease, profession, year of death – or any combination.

The possibility that President Obama was exposed to swine-flu in Mexico reminds us that even famous people are at risk of potentially fatal infectious diseases.  In fact, Influenza has been implicated in the deaths of 43 well known people to date.   The list includes two American Presidents – Martin Van Buren (died 1862) and Benjamin Harrison (1901).   At least eight other world leaders may have died of the disease (year of death in parentheses):

Paolo Boselli, Italy (1932)
Antonio Carmona, Portugal (1951)
Amintore Fanfani, Italy (1999)
Archduke  Frederick Hapsburg, Hungary (1936)
Takaaki Kato, Japan (1925)
Francesco  Nitti,  Italy (1953)
Juan Peron, Argentina (1974)
Adolf Scharf, Austria (1965)

Other cases of fatal Influenza:

Amadeo de Sousa-Cardoso, Painter (1918)
Sir Claude Auchinleck, English military (1981)
Angela  Baddeley, Actress (1976)
Tallulah Bankhead, Actress (1968)
Floyd Bennett, Aviator (1928)
Helena Blavatsky, Theosophist (1891)
Lewis Carroll, Author (1898)
William Cobbett, Publisher (1835)
Edward J.  Connelly, Actor (1928)
Jules Dassin, Movie Producer (2008)
John Haydon, Described Down’s syndrome (1896)
Shoghi Effendi,  Bahai leader (1957)
Krao Farini, Barnum, ‘Missing Link’ (1926)
Charles Griffes, Classical composer (1926)
Jean Harlow, Actress (1937)
Elwood Haynes, Automobile inventor (1925)
Trevor Howard, Actor (1988)
Thomas Henry Huxley, Paleontologist (1895)
Jacques Ibert, Composer (1962)
Roscoe Jackson, Founder of Hudson Motors (1929)
Pope John Paul II  (2005)
Ali Osman Khan, Indian Ruler – World’s richest man (1967)
Lillie Langtree, Actress (1929)
Dmitri Mendeleyev, Physicist (1907)
Billy Mitchell, American military (1936)
Theodore Roberts, Actor (1928)
Estelita Rodriguez, Actress (1966)
John Ruskin, Philosopher (1900)
Lawrence Sterne, Author (1768)
William Allen Sturge, Physician (1919)
Luchino Visconti, Movie Director (1976)
Hack Wilson, Baseball player (1948)

(In some cases, the diagnosis of “Influenza” was speculative, or one of multiple diseases given as the cause of death.)

These lists are from www.VIPatients.com , an interactive website that follows the diseases and deaths of all famous persons.  Lists include famous animals, singers, politicians, sports heroes, movie stars, serial killers … over 13,000 to date. Users can access the medical history of a single person; or generate a list based on disease, profession, year of death – or any combination.

On December 31, the Media once again recounted all of the wars, earthquakes, divorces, births, rapes, sporting records …. Inevitably, a long list of famous persons will have passed on: most “after a long illness,” “suddenly” or “of natural causes.”
427 famous folk died of specified misfortunes in 2008. For the purpose of this research, “famous” is defined as “well recognized by the general public at large.”

Cancer was recorded as the reason for death in 38.9% of notable deaths, while heart attack or stroke accounted for 16.7%.
7.1% died of pneumonia and 6.2% vehicular accidents (half of these related to automobiles).
3.1% were murdered and 3.3% committed suicide.
An additional 9.4% succumbed when their liver, lungs, kidneys or heart “failed”; while 6.6% died because their brains did likewise (Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, etc).

During the past two decades, a small number of fatal conditions have continued to account for most deaths among the famous and infamous; however, the relative ranking of some diseases appears to be changing.
A cause of death was specified for 4,652 VIP’s during 1990 to 2008.

The most obvious change has been the fact that people rarely die of AIDS any more.
287 famous persons are known to have contracted AIDS.
172 have died of the disease since 1989, but only 20 since 1999.
In contrast, the contribution of cancer to famous death increased significantly during the same period.
Cancer accounted for 25.7% of VIP obits in 1990, and 35.8% in 2008.
In fact, throughout all of history, 2,708 famous persons have died of cancer.
91% of these deaths have occurred since 1900, 87% since 1950, 56% since 1990 … and 5.8% during the single year, 2008 !

Of course, “cancer” is not a single disease. The nature of fatal tumors was specified in 65% of cancer obits. During 1990 to 2008, the relative proportion of fatal lung and brain cancers has remained fairly constant. The contribution of breast and hematological malignancy (leukemia and lymphoma) has declined, while prostate and colon tumors have increased accordingly.
Cancer of the pancreas, a relatively unfamiliar tumor, is actually more common than breast, prostate or colon cancer as a cause of death in this population.

We should not assume that VIP-death reflects mortality trends among the general population. Indeed, famous persons are “not like the rest of us.” Many follow a life style which might invite medical misfortune, while enjoying access to excellent medical facilities. Thus, an analysis of mortality in this group might not represent the incidence of nonfatal diseases. In any case, diagnoses which we read in obituaries are often based on speculation or tend to stress the more sensational misfortunes of famous people.

Welcome to the VIPatients blog.