Cheryl Mull

1.  What was the primary disease in this movie and whom did it affect?  The primary disease is adrenoleukodystrophy (ALD).  This disease affects the child- Lorenzo, a five year old boy.

2.  How would you classify the disease' impact on the patients functional status, mild, moderate or severe, and why?  This is a combination of all of the above, but mainly it is severe, because it started out from a mild to moderate to a severe case with him becoming so helpless, and couldn't walk, talk, and it affected his moods, speech and hearing.  

3.  In your opinion, how did the research doctors regard Lorenzo's parents?  I don't feel like they respected Lorenzo's parents' feelings like they should had of.  They showed little regards of hope towards the parents.  It took Lorenzo's parents' persistance to really get the doctors to listen well.

4. "The roles of the researchers were juxtaposed or changed in this movie." Explain why this is true.  Lorenzo's parents were the ones who really worked hard at researching the disease- Adrenoleukodystrophy and seeking the cure for it.  They put their "hearts and minds" into it.

5. Dad had a breakthrough at the library-explain the paperclip analogy/model.  The dad used two types of paperclips.  One was representing a good fat chain and amino acid one.  He illustrated how these chains equally grow.  Although, good fats can build faster and the bad ones that slowed in production were the fats. 

6. Dad was concerned when Lorenzo's friend came from Africa to live with the Adone's and care for Lorenzo.  What was Dad's primary concern?The dad was concerned about racism (Adone was a Muslim, fro Africa), he was concerned about his reaction to Lorenzo's condition. The dad was worried about the fact that Omari was from Africa and a Muslim, and him to see Lorenzo's now ill with ALD.

7. Who was the first human subject to consume the oil and how was it dosed and administered through what portal (ingested, injected, absorbed, inhaled, or other)?  The first human to ingest the oil was Deidre who was Lorenzo's Aunt.  It was called Lorenzo's oil and used like a salad dressing. 

8. What is the role of money in this research product? who paid for most of the early groundbreaking research? Lorenzo's family paid for the biggest part of the research.  They even took out a second morgage on their home. 

9.  The critical mass theory suggests that multiple researchers conclusively find (or frequently stumble upon) an answer to a scientific inquiry.  We're the researchers on a single path to finding a cure for this disease?  No,  because their main focus was on slowing or stopping the disease rather than the cure.  They tryed to avoid further damage of myelin tissue.  I give all the credit and praise to the parents, for doing the groundbreaking research! 

10. Consider ethics for a moment.  Does this movie represent an appropriate ethical model for research. Defend your answer.  I feel this was ethical, as well as the principles behind it. It was worth it for Lorenzo's parents to take the chances and try to do something positive, rather than just leave it up to the doctors.  The parents were all for the research and seeking out treatment and a possible cure.  Overall, it displayed the quality of life for the patient/subject,.  In the long run this could be passed on to others, by what was learned in this research.  I feel like Lorenzo's parents saw Lorenzo's will to live (in his eyes) so went in that direction with love in their hearts.