In this documentary, we enter the life of Eva Markvoort, a young woman with cystic fibrosis. Documentary filmmakers Philip Lyall and Nimisha Mukerji gain extraordinary access to Eva's life as she struggles with the disease while awaiting a lung transplant. Because patients with cystic fibrosis are constantly at risk for lung infections, they cannot meet face-to-face in support groups, as this would risk transmission of antibiotic-resistant superbugs. Eva meets with other patients via an online support group that lets them exchange messages, videos, and blog posts.
We get to see the everyday details of living with cystic fibrosis: the very frequent hospital visits, the staggering array of medications, the mechanical chest-pounding vests that help to loosen the goo in a patient's lungs. We wait with Eva for the pager to go off, letting her know that the new lungs she has been waiting for are available. We go into the operating room to see her ruined lungs removed (even someone not trained in medicine can see that there is something terribly wrong with her lungs). We see Eva nearly die from the transplant, then spring back for two beautiful years of life before chronic rejection sets in.
We might wish for a little bit more of the science of cystic fibrosis here, but there are many other films that explain basic genetics, and several documentaries explore new treatments for cystic fibrosis. While it is fun to think about the rosy future, this documentary shows us the gritty here and now, or at least the state of the art at the end of the first decade of the 21st century.
Students considering a career in medicine or medical research are likely to find this a powerfully motivating film.
The film makes a strong case for organ donation. Many patients die awaiting transplants from an adequately-matched donor.
The film is about the daily life of patients with cystic fibrosis, and does not explore the area of prevention. Among people of European descent, cystic fibrosis is the most common inherited disorder leading to early death. In the world of the $1000 genome, or even the $100 genome, couples at risk for giving birth to a child with cystic fibrosis will have the option of IVF/PGD to prevent the disease in their children. This film is an excellent introduction to the tremendous financial and emotional cost of a single inherited disorder, and could be used to start a discussion of IVF/PGD in a group setting.
One of Eva's friends is Meg, who in addition to having cystic fibrosis struggles with substance abuse, including daily smoking of marijuana. Eva points out that smoking is about the worst thing that anyone with cystic fibrosis can do. This raises the issue of patient responsibility as an aspect of medical care. We would really like to see Meg get the help that she needs to deal with substance abuse, but she falls through the cracks of an imperfect system of care. There does not seem to be an easy answer here, making this another good topic for discussion.
1. Website for 65_RedRoses
2. OMIM entry for Cystic Fibrosis