Pubdate: 17 Jan. 1998 Source: Chicago Tribune (IL) Copyright: 1998 Chicago Tribune Company Website: http://www.chicagotribune.com/ Forum: http://www.chicagotribune.com/interact/boards/ Contact: Sue Wasconis Section: Sec. 1 ALLEVIATE PAIN EVANSTON - Lord preserve me from an oncologist who has a strong religious or philosophical belief in the virtue of suffering as Jose A. Bufill seems to (Commentary, Jan. 10). Such a physician might deny me adequate pain medication and convince himself he was enhancing my spiritual development. The point is, virtually all end of life pain is controllable with available medications, but unfortunately many physicians are too timid, too intimidated by the FDA (which has made far too many pain patients unwitting casualties of the war on drugs), or see no benefit in alleviating their patient's pain. Suffering from pain is not necessary. How dare any physician impose it upon his patients with self-righteous cant about its worth? One, and perhaps the most hopeful, result of the legalization of assisted suicide in Oregon is that the amount of pain medication (primarily morphine) prescribed for severe pain has increased dramatically there. Because patients have a legal alternative, physicians are finally taking their duty to alleviate pain seriously. And, as one would expect, when the pain is alleviated, the motivation for suicide is usually gone. What a shame it takes such extreme measures for physicians to get the message--don't romanticize suffering, alleviate it. Sue Wasconis - --- MAP posted-by: derek rea