What if You Could Smell Diseases Before They Break Out?
A superpower? Or rather a burden? Would you tell people so they can get early treatment? So many questions …
Hello everyone,
It's Wednesday again, which means it's "I find stuff, I recommend stuff" time. Despite my best efforts, I still can't think of a shorter cooler name for it.
I’m writing to you from beautiful Munich because tomorrow I’m leaving for a train trip to Valley. Well, obviously not the silicon one. Bavaria has a valley that is actually called Valley. A (valley)² so to speak. Haha. Well, Bavarians are something, I tell you.
Anyhow, I’m visiting Valley because I’m attending a conference for story workers. A term I didn’t even know existed until recently. But yeah, I’m a writer, I tell stories, hell, I’m a story worker. I like that.
And we will hopefully get some inspiration from the valley called Valley. It is where Michael Ende finished his Never-ending Story. So I’m in for a super-hero journey.
Speaking of, this newsletter features exactly this: A real-life superhero. Meet the nurse that can smell diseases years before they break out. A fascinating read, a really interesting Ted Talk – and a lot of food for thoughts.
Imagine this would be your superpower? Would you tell anyone?
Cheers,
Katie
The Nurse That Can Smell Parkinson’s
Spider-Man can create his own safety net, Wolverine will literally win any cat fight and Batman... hmm... has a pretty cool car? Robin? A sexy six-pack? Well, they all have some kind of superpower to fight evil.
But that's just comics. That doesn't happen in real life. Wrong! Enter Joy Milne, a superhero in the real world who can smell disease years before it shows any symptoms at all. The former nurse always had a remarkable sense of smell, but it wasn't until she attended a Parkinson's support group that she identified the odour her husband had been smelling for years as Parkinson's.
Her mother had always told her she shouldn't tell anyone about her gift. But after losing her husband to Parkinson's, she did. And luckily, scientists listened and found out that the special molecules responsible for the smell can be found in the back of the neck. They are now developing a test kit to detect Parkinson's at an early stage – just because of her!
The New York Times did a great portrait of her, how she grew up with this olfactory sense, but also touched on the downside. I mean, how many people do you meet in a week, a month, a year? Imagine you were in her shoes. Would you tell them if you smelled a disease?
It seems that real life is not so different from the comic world - having a superpower comes with a lot of responsibility and is also often a burden.
📖 For the avid readers among you
Here is the article: The Woman Who Could Smell Parkinson’s
Who’s it for? Curiosity seekers, science enthusiasts, and anyone who appreciates the power of human perception.
Time to invest: A bit of a long read, probably 10 until 20 minutes, but it’s absolutely worth it.
📺 For the audiovisual types of you
Here is her Ted Talk: “The Nurse That Can Smell Parkinson”
Time to invest: 18:49 minutes
Who’s this for? Same like above + lovers of a good Scottish accent.
Cheers,
Katie