Under Our Skin Page #3

why it's not being treated

with the kind of seriousness

that it deserves.

This is not a rare disease.

It's thought of as a rare disease,

but in fact, there's nothing

controversial about the fact

that it's the most common

vector-borne disease

in America today.

It is far, far more common

and much more dangerous

to the average American

than West Nile virus is.

The Centers for Disease Control

reported over 35,000 new cases last year.

Yet because the disease

is so often overlooked,

they admit that the actual number

may be up to 12 times higher,

making Lyme disease

far more prevalent than AIDS.

In the past 15 years,

annual cases have increased fourfold,

and in the past two years alone,

cases have almost doubled.

The number of cases

of Lyme disease went way up

in this country last year,

up by 41% to be exact.

A record number of Lyme disease cases

have been reported in the state

of Maryland this year.

New cases of Lyme disease

are up 50% in Massachusetts.

The CDC admits

there are at least ten times

as many cases out there.

The entire neighborhoods

and whole families

are being debilitated

by this infectious disease.

Health officials

are now calling it an epidemic.

I think there are hundreds

of thousands of people out there

who have Lyme disease who have

no idea they have Lyme disease.

There are doctors out there

who aren't looking for it.

He just kept saying,

"You don't have Lyme."

"You don't have

Lyme disease."

"You don't have Lyme."

He told me there was no such thing

as Lyme disease in North Carolina.

"Lyme disease doesn't

really exist in Tennessee."

"You can't have Lyme disease,

because you haven't been

to these areas in Long Island

or this area in Connecticut."

I've been told it isn't Lyme

hundreds and hundreds of times.

How do you know you have it?

"Why do you say you have it?"

He slammed his fist

on the table and said,

"Don't talk to me

about Lyme anymore."

It is a national health crisis

that is completely and totally

being ignored and squashed.

What is going on?

We have a major problem

with this disease.

We have a major problem

finding out who's got it,

treating them effectively and quickly.

It's far more expensive

to treat in late stages

and less effective than it is early,

and yet we don't respond early enough

with many of the patients,

and many of them get to late stage,

and they're sick

for the rest of their lives.

Okay, quiet.

No barking.

No barking.

Okay.

- Have a good day.

- I love you, my girl.

I'll see you later.

I'm a medical doctor

with a specialty in pathology.

I'm a general pathologist,

but I'm doing molecular studies now

in connection with my 20 years

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