Madison had no trouble arranging the meeting with Helen that Jack had requested. They were already seated in her office in front of her desk when she came in and sat down.
As Helen’s eyes fixed on him with guarded anticipation, Jack cleared his throat and slid forward in his chair.
“I no longer believe that removing Tess’s thyroid by itself will cure her,” he said.
Helen’s face went slack. “I hope you’re kidding, because after all we’ve been through…I mean, are you now telling me you want to abandon your plan and give Hollis the go-ahead to start Vitracide?”
“Absolutely not” Jack said with complete certainty.
“We’re convinced we can still cure Tess and every other woman with GNS. We still believe GNS is a new autoimmune disease. In order to cure Tess or any other women with GNS we have to eliminate the abnormal antibodies that are attacking their brain tissue.”
“I believe you’ve already explained that to me. That was our justification for removing Tess’s thyroid.”
“Removing the thyroid will prevent the formation of any new toxic antibodies but what I overlooked was that the operation won’t eliminate the abnormal antibodies that are already present. Based on cutting-edge research I’ve just become aware of, the existing antibodies will continue to attack the brain tissue for at least six weeks. I don’t believe any of the women will be able to survive that long.” Jack moved back in his chair and placed his hands on his thighs. “If we don’t eliminate the antibodies that already exist, we won’t cure GNS.”
“Is there a way to do that?” Helen asked.
“I believe there is. There’s a group at Rockefeller University who have recently discovered that certain strains of streptococcus bacteria produce an enzyme that destroys these abnormal antibodies. They’re calling the preparation Streptogenase V. The result has been a complete reversal of the neurologic symptoms.”
“Theoretically, every woman with GNS should recover if she receives Streptogenase V,” Madison added.
Helen guarded her silence, tapping her leather blotter with a pencil. “I’ve had people try to sell me encyclopedias door-to-door who offered a more persuasive argument than that.” Her expression suddenly changed, and with ping-ponging eyes, she asked, “Do you two realize when the average person hears the word streptococcus they don’t think of a sore throat? They think of the deadly flesh-eating bacteria or toxic shock syndrome, which instantly makes their blood run cold. It would be like telling people we want to cure GNS by giving their loved ones arsenic or the Black Plague.” She stopped for a few moments. And then, in a calmer voice inquired, “Do you have anything else to support this theory besides this experimental information?”
“Sherry Rosenfelt had her tonsils out but Lisa didn’t. I spoke with Lisa this morning. She told me right before she got pregnant she was treated for a strep throat.” Jack then spent some time informing Helen of the other four women Marc had located in Florida who were thought to have GNS but turned out not to. He made a point to emphasize that they had all received the flu shots and that at least two had positive strep tests.
“Are you trying to tell me that if a woman still has her tonsils in, she can’t get GNS?” Helen asked.
“Not exactly. We’re saying that a certain strep infection contracted just at the right time offers a high-grade protection or even a cure against GNS. Marc’s combing through the Data Record right now trying to find more women with the same clinical history.”
“This research being done at Rockefeller University. How many women have taken part in it?”
Jack tugged at his collar. “Unfortunately, all of their studies to this point have been done on animals.”
“I beg your pardon.”
“But Dr. Tau did mention that they have received permission from the FDA to begin clinical trials in humans.”
‘Assuming I should agree to this, how do you plan to administer this Strep…”
“Streptogenase V,” Madison said in a meek voice.
“Streptogenase V,” Helen repeated. “You can’t inject a preparation like that directly into the bloodstream. It would be too dangerous.”
“Actually, Dr. Tau and her group have determined that’s the only way it works.”
“You’re telling me this…this bacterial concoction, or whatever in God’s name you want to call it, is nowhere close to being FDA approved. That means the only way we could justify administering it would be as the only conceivable treatment to save a life.”
“I’ve been involved in a few cases where we did that,” Jack said.
“I have also. But I think you’d agree, not on this level.”
“I’m not sure this country’s ever faced an epidemic like GNS before,” Madison said.
After a deep sigh, Helen stood up. “So tell me exactly what you’re proposing.”
“We already have Mike’s full approval, so we’d like to acquire the strep preparation from New York and administer it to Tess as soon as possible. Dr. Tau has agreed to provide us with enough as long as you’ll sign off on it.”
“I must be out of my mind. I should be calling psychiatry to come down here and drop a net over the three of us.” Helen leaned forward, placed her palms squarely on her desk and locked eyes with both of them. “I sure hope you two know what the hell you’re doing.”
“I’m nor sure I can offer you that guarantee,” Jack said.
“How long after administering this drug will we know if it’s been successful?”
“We can’t predict exactly but according to Dr. Tau, the effects of the Streptogenase V occur fairly quickly.”
“In mice, you mean,” Helen said with a slow shake of her head. “I’m going to have a lot of people to answer to on this thing. As soon as the word gets out, they’ll be coming after us with pitchforks and lanterns. And it’s not too hard to figure out who’ll be leading the mob.” She raised her eyes. “How soon can you get this stuff from New York?”
“I was planning on flying up to New York tomorrow on Mike’s plane. We can give Tess the first dose as soon as I get back.”
Helen started for the door. “I hope you two understand this is it. The board and the medical staff are at the end of their respective ropes. Once they hear about this strep treatment, I can assure you we have played our last card. If there’s nothing more, I have some phone calls to make.”
Jack and Madison came to their feet. A number of worries leapt to Jack’s mind but he said nothing. Madison gestured toward the door and he followed her out of the office.