Cause of Death

CFS patients who died of cancer, heart failure, or suicide had much shorter lifespans than the general population, according to a 2004 study:

Average age of cancer deaths:

• ME/CFS – 47.8 years
• Avg population – 72.0 years
• Difference – 24.2 years

Average age of heart failure deaths:

• ME/CFS – 58.7 years
• Avg population – 83.1 years
• Difference – 24.4 years

Average age of suicide deaths:

• ME/CFS – 39.5 years
• Avg population – 48.0 years
• Difference – 8.5 years

The dramatic results of this preliminary study begs the question: why hasn't more research been done in this area?

Imagine the impact on the potential funding for research into ME/CFIDS/XMRV if a more comprehensive study produced the same results - and got the kind of coverage in the media that the WPI XMRV study did.

More information:

• Causes of Death Among Patients With Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, Jason et al - The original study. Also here. See also Dr. Jason's web site.
• Causes of Death among Patients with Chronic Fatigue Syndrome - A Dig Deep News blog post. Summary and links.
• Cause of Death among Patients with Chronic Fatigue Syndrome - Phoenix Rising forum thread.