• Welcome to Phoenix Rising!

    Created in 2008, Phoenix Rising is the largest and oldest forum dedicated to furthering the understanding of, and finding treatments for, complex chronic illnesses such as chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS), fibromyalgia, long COVID, postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome (POTS), mast cell activation syndrome (MCAS), and allied diseases.

    To become a member, simply click the Register button at the top right.

Norwegian professor in biology supportive of PACE

TiredSam

The wise nematode hibernates
Messages
2,677
Location
Germany
Well ... you are a pretty goofy-looking sheep after all :D
Maybe a sheepish-looking goofy will help her restore the balance
upload_2016-4-26_9-45-7.jpeg
 

Kalliope

Senior Member
Messages
367
Location
Norway
I have written to Gundersen but not had a reply. I am also hoping that Aftenposten will publish a brief response from me.
Should Aftenposten choose to not publish your response, you can still share it as a comment to the article.

Am looking forward to read it and appreciate your effort. He certainly won't listen to "mere" patients.
 

deleder2k

Senior Member
Messages
1,129
I see this guy Gundersen has sent more than 3500 tweets. He's got quite a few followers, but for all that, has accrued the grand total of 48 likes.

I'm wondering whether that suggests perhaps he's not as influential as might appear? Perhaps one of these close-to-retirement figures that hasn't got much to say any more but likes to be in the limelight by making bold claims?


He has a colomn in the paper once or twice a month about "bad" science. Last month he wrote a piece on why it is ridiculous for a mediocre Norwegian University/University College to have visions/missions. It sparked a national debate. I think he enjoys debates more than anyone (even politicians). He has written a book about why Chiropracy, homeopathy, and other forms of alternative medicine is quackery. He is also very clear that researchers must be able to say and mean whatever they'd like - even about controversial political stuff.

It is not like he is the most influential academic here in the Kingdom, but he is highly vocal. He raises many issues in his column in the "The Evening News" (Aftenposten). Because of that, and because of him being highly vocal in other debates he gets airtime on radio in different debate programs. Perhaps some think he is somewhat lunatic, but nevertheless his opinions reaches out to most Norwegians.
 
Last edited:

deleder2k

Senior Member
Messages
1,129

Jonathan Edwards

"Gibberish"
Messages
5,256
Journalist Jørgen Jelstad who wrote the book called De Bortgjemte (The Hidden) has written a reply to professor Gundersen at his own blog. I don't have the capacity to translate it, but here is a Google translation link: https://translate.google.com/translate?sl=no&tl=en&js=y&prev=_t&hl=no&ie=UTF-8&u=https://debortgjemte.com/2016/04/26/hva-om-pasientene-har-rett-kristian-gundersen/&edit-text=

Check this out too if you haven't:


Well, with the wiggle-room of translation, that seems to be almost exactly what we sent to Aftenposten! Except they asked us to be a bit shorter. But Jelstad has done a good job here - clear and well balanced. Nice blog.
 

Kalliope

Senior Member
Messages
367
Location
Norway
Well, with the wiggle-room of translation, that seems to be almost exactly what we sent to Aftenposten! Except they asked us to be a bit shorter. But Jelstad has done a good job here - clear and well balanced. Nice blog.

Jørgen Jelstad is an amazing capacity! His very informative book on ME - "The hidden" was published in 2011 and contains the history of research on ME up till Fluge&Mellas Rituximab-research.

The book managed to create quite a debate on ME. It was even recommended by the politician Erna Solberg at the Norwegian Parliament. She is now the prime minister of Norway.

The book was published at one of the largest publishing houses, and it is now in its 3. or 4. edition.

Jørgen Jelstad has a blog with the same name as the book (De bortgjemte). Here he keeps his followers up to date on research and other ME-related news. He has even translated all the three blog posts on PACE from David Tuller into Norwegian, in order to make them more accessible for Norwegian readers.

In 2013 he held a wonderful speech at the pre conference dinner to the Invest In ME-conference. The speech is called "Words matter".

The Norwegian ME Association - Department Rogaland - organised a lecture evening on ME where Jørgen Jelstad was one of 6 speakers. The lectures were taped and made into a DVD. The DVD is available with English subtitles for the Norwegian lectures.
 

TiredSam

The wise nematode hibernates
Messages
2,677
Location
Germany
Brilliant article, especially the last paragraph, and the analogy with MS following. Such an analogy is a great way to illustrate what has happened with PACE to the scientifically and statistically clueless public (I include myself in that).
 

Woolie

Senior Member
Messages
3,263
@Kalliope, @deleder2k (and others here), your Norway is really quite an amazing country. The stories you tell us about ME paint a picture of a government that is genuinely open to debate, and a journalistic culture which actually works. Your small country seems in many ways a model for the rest of the world!
 
Last edited:

Marky90

Science breeds knowledge, opinion breeds ignorance
Messages
1,253
The article includes an enormous amount of detail surrounding the PACE trial that i wouldn't have expected anyone to know, except for people like us and David Tuller who have followed events very closely; Including details that I've almost never seen mentioned elsewhere such as the PACE trial's "number needed to treat".

Indeed. Jelstad has been devoted to the ME-story for a long time, partly due to his own mother being severely ill with it. He writes about ME-news on his blog, and often participates in conferences. Great guy!
 

Valentijn

Senior Member
Messages
15,786
The blog is well worth reading, and not too mangled by Google Translate. Though I'd love to have a properly translated English version up, just so we can refer doubters to it.

From the conclusion:
The controversy about PACE will surely continue for a while. But unlike Gundersen argues, the PACE controversy may soon end up being a positive story about patient engagement and research. About competent patients who are so much more than just patients. They are doctors, scientists, statisticians, teachers, plumbers, nurses, lawyers, architects, cleaners, professors, journalists ... they are you and me. They have been so unfortunate to be seriously ill. But they can still think and reason, think and have important knowledge. It turns PACE story that we should be happy.
 
Last edited: