Your View

People, people! Sure it's horrible that this doctor decided not to treat the boy, but don't start critisizing Canada as a whole over this incident, I could have happened anywhere.

It is so bad to learn of the despicable behavior by these Canadian doctors. It is very true that there is a lot of racism in this country than anywhere else in the world. These Canadians pretend as though they are good hearted but are the worst when it comes to other races.

If this boy was white there is no way he could have been denied treatment. It is a crime in Canada to wear a dark or a black skin. They say they want immigrants only to reduce them to mere scavengers thereby violating one’s natural right to descent life.

People have sacrificed a lot to come here only to find empty promises let alone a descent job to pay for the exorbitant rents and high taxes.

Black people are discriminated against in all places should it be at work or finding accommodation. If you were black climbing the ladder it’s just a non-starter.

It is time for Canada to realize that this is the 21st century and the period of plantations is over.America has become successful because they accept people of all color why not follow suit.

You Whitebread Canadians like to boast to each other about how generous you are, how open-minded and welcoming of diversity. What rubbish!

With the case of this unfortunate boy, with your performance in the Climate Change discussion at the Commonwealth Conference [You people don't care about the Commonwealth anyway], with your discrimination against highly qualified black and Asian immigrants who are forced to clean floors and drive taxis and work as security guards, the world is waking up to what you really are. Because people write letters to the home countries.

They tell their friends, "Don't come to Canada. Your qualifications mean nothing here unless you are white". So word is spreading. And what about the prominent Canadian science professor from Western Ontario University traveling all over the world preaching that people with dark skins are inferior primates with large sexual organs and low intelligence?

My brother writes to me from Bern in Switzerland where he is a biochemist that the Racists political organizations in Switzerland just love this famous Canadian professor.

I hope the American help this Vietnamese boy. I just want to know where I can send some money to help him.

Let's back off a little. We came up with a diagnostic - bad news. Could we get a second opinion, please? Canada have just became accountable to this little boy and we must pursue our quest for a solution. 1) Give him an extended visa for unlimited period of time to stay here 2) Provide him with an unlimited authorisation to travel to the US. 3) Have those specialists from Toronto having a teleconference with the US specialists in Boston and New York to share their concerns about the case, and 4) make a decision. Since this case is quite an exception, let's put aside the politics, our health care system problems, the taxpayer's concerns and how many persons we could help with the raisen money. Let's do whatever it takes to solve this issue. If the US doctors says they can do it, do not waste a single day. If the boy is sent back to Vietnam, then it will be over and we will forget it all. This is not what Canada is all about, neither the USA. We cannot succeed by giving up. Wishing a long healthy life to the little boy.

I really don't care where this poor little boy gets his help...as long as he gets it. If Toronto has the guts to admit they can't do it, let's not ridicule them for it. I'm praying for the boy and I hope the rest of you will too.

Sicks of Toronto is a very good Hospital and why they decided that they did not want to do the operation, there had to be good reasons for this. If the doctors in Boston think that they can to the operation, all the power to them and to the boy. I would want something done if it were me having to carry that all my life.

As`for Jack from Yellowknife, I think your comments are heartless and are totally uncalled for and not ones that most Canadians agree with. I KNOW THAT I DON'T.

I feel that Sick Childrens should have treated the boy if not for medical grounds, than simply for compassionate grounds. The boy is in fact an orphan, no parents.

Most likely ridiculed in his home town, maybe even ostracized, for something beyond his control and understanding. All he must know is that he is different, and the pain that being different brings.

Perhaps the only reason that the doctor in Boston is doing the procedure is for the publicity. But maybe not.

It may be genuine concern for the child's well being and health that he is willing to take the chance with the boy's health. I am sure he is happy for the decision.

If my tax dollars are used to help anyone in need, from anywhere, then so be it. So far, knock on wood, my family has been virtually illness and injury free, but I know that when I do need it, the medical help will be there.

Yes I think some thing can be done for this child.

I hope it is not a publicity stunt like "BABY FAE BEING GIVEN A BABOON'S HEART" seemed to be, for improving Humana Hospital share prices, with daily news releases, while the child lived, just a few short years ago.

We must bear in mind these types of surgeries are not commonplace and I dare say that we need to consider that some surgeons are not willing to take on potential risks involved due to their own lack of expertise and lack of practice.

If a doctor anywhere else on earth feels he or she does have enough previous experience then best for all parties concerned that they perform the surgery.

While the lad's condition is not life-threatening, his life will not be made any easier with the disfigurement.

Guess we all wanted a fairytale transformation and were disappointed it did not take place on Canadian soil.

Canadians were the catalyst and that ought to be enough. I am sure it will be for the patient!

Child was born with a condition that could only be removed with surgery. I once had a small lump and I was bothered by it.

If you had a big tumor on your own face, would you not want it removed? Not to look normal, but even just to feel normail.

If you had a child who could die from the implication of surgery, would you not think twice about the surgery? So don't blame the CAN doctors.

The boy came 'cause he came to Canada TO GET THE SURGERY, NOT TO BE REVIEWED AND THEN REJECTED.

CANADA IS CHANGING.

CANADA ALWAYS HELPED.

CANADA SHOULD ALWAYS HELP. (BECAUSE CANADA IS NOT ONLY RICHER, BUT ALSO IS A COUNTRY WITH BIG HEARTED PEOPLE.

Blame the money that blinds us from the truth.

Blame ourselves for not helping enough.

Life is short. Help more.

God bless Canada and all the richer countries that help.

Please God take the money away from those who do not know how to love and teach us to love like .

Re: Eric (Montreal)
In response to your comment to my post, in which you state that "It's our resources and money that gets wasted on frivolous examples of humanitarianism", I question how it could be considered a frivolous waste to help a child (any child), regardless of where they are from to lead a healthier life.

Not everyone is priveleged enough to be born in a country where medical care is easily accessed. The fact is that when you remove the word Vietnamese from your statement, what you are left with is simply "child".

He cannot fend for himself and has no family to fend for him and it was through the kindness of others that he was sent here, not by money from your pocket.

This is an innocent 10 year old child we are talking about. Whether he gets treatment in Canada or the US is besides the point. The poor child cannot even eat because of the size of the growth on his face. He's not here for a nose job!

I realize a lot of people in Canada don't have a family Doctor,(myself and handicapped son included) and are waiting treatment. Does that mean that I should stop paying my taxes which help pay for your Doctor and medical care while my family goes without? Hmm...

Thank God there are people in this country that don't see acts of humanity as a waste. Maybe we can't save the whole world but we can try to make it a better place for those less fortunate.

As a taxpayer, I have no problem donating a couple of cents to give this child back his life.

This whole episode, and the way it was presented, is abjectly slanted for political purposes. The specialists in Toronto deemed the surgery to be too risky. The specialists in Boston have a different opinion.

It has nothing to do with the Canadian or American health care "systems".

Whoever wrote this article is merely trying to make cheap political points out of a poor boy's disfigurement. They should be ashamed!

It never occurred to me to criticize the Canadian doctors for their decision not to treat this boy.

I don't have the expertise to evaluate the boy's situation and certainly don't have the information I would need, even if I did. That's why we seek a second opinion in matters concerning our health.

Risk is part of the deal. How much are you willing to risk to achieve what will hopefully be a better result? And when you're taking the risk on behalf of a child--that's even more weighty.

How this turned into some sort of discussion about how bad or uncaring our medical people are, baffled me until I read the question posed by the CBC again: "What do you make of the decision to treat the boy in the U.S. and not in Canada?"

The question seems designed to generate exactly that kind of discussion, pitting one side against the other. It's a trick that we fall for quite often when we respond on these message boards, stirring up a controversy when there really isn't very much to get worked up about. I'm glad if this boy can get help. It remains to be seen if these procedures will be successful. I hope they will be. And I know there are lots of children who do not have access to similar assistance, but it's not a justification to deny helping this young boy if it can be done.

As far as motives, that the Boston doctors might have, do we not all have mixed motives when we act--some more altruistic than others? I don't find it a stretch to accept that they might be acting mostly from humanitarian motives.

"How anyone can gripe about the use of taxpayers dollars to help a disadvantaged child is beyond me. When we can find it in our budget to pay atheletes to run around a track and win medals, and pay hockey players millions of dollars a year, surely we can find it in our hearts and pockets to treat an orphan who has already lost everything."

It's our resources and our money that get wasted on such frivolous examples of humanitarianism. Haven't you noticed that Canadians gripe about their own health care system because it is understaffed and underfunded?

As a taxpayer, it's more important to me that either myself or someone in my family get immediate medical treatment before some Vietnamese child with a growth on his face. Perhaps some kind-hearted plastic surgeon out in Hollywood can help the kid for free.

"There are always risks with procedures but surgeons always take them," says Joe from TO.

Well Joe, I don't know. Isn't that why plastic surgeons have come under so much scrutiny of late?

I had a surgeon open up my back once. I contracted a staph infection and was laid up for months afterward.

Thirty years later my lower back muscles still go into spam once in a while, a direct result of that operation's side effect.

I don't particularly blame the surgeon, given that hospitals are notorious places for picking things up whether you want them or not.

My tale isn't very similar to Son's need, but I mention it to point out only one of the things that can go wrong.

Frankly, the Sick Kids specialists were displaying a level of maturity I find encouraging.

As for your claim American doctors have access to more money and resources, it's not the issue.

The decision not to operate at Sick Kids had absolutely nothing to do with money nor resources, but rather confidence in getting the job done right.

Sick Kids has always reached out to and taken in seemingly impossible cases for as long as I can remember and has a reputation world wide for doing so.

Why do you think Son came to Sick Kids from Vietnam rather than some American hospital?

The team of specialists at Sick Kids Hospital spent four months studying this childs case before concluding that the risks would outway the benefits of surgery.

They would not have invested so much time if they had no intentions of helping him if they could. As unfortunate as it is, I am certain that the decision was made in the childs best interests, and not from an economical point of view.

How anyone can gripe about the use of taxpayers dollars to help a disadvantaged child is beyond me. When we can find it in our budget to pay atheletes to run around a track and win medals, and pay hockey players millions of dollars a year, surely we can find it in our hearts and pockets to treat an orphan who has already lost everything.

If the child could have been treated in Canada I'm sure that more than enough donations would have poured in from compassionate Canadians to cover his medical expenses and more.

To those who are only concerned about their tax dollars... you are an embarrassment to this country. Shame on you!

"He was not "turned away"; he was evaluated over a FOUR MONTH period by doctors wanting to help him - taking the time out of their practice and hospital rounds, to observe and map his operation and future progress, would have been unbelievably time-consuming."

Evaluated at taxpayers' expense, no doubt. I wonder how many Canadians died as a result of those doctors having their time being preoccupied by some foreign child with a minor problem. We should not be doing charity work for the World.

How obtuse can some readers be? The readers who put a version of "shame on the Toronto doctors" for not operating should get a life.

And to whomever wrote the article, to say the boy "was turned away by a Toronto hospital" is mean-spirited at best.

He was not "turned away"; he was evaluated over a FOUR MONTH period by doctors wanting to help him - taking the time out of their practice and hospital rounds, to observe and map his operation and future progress, would have been unbelievably time-consuming.

And the fact that the hospital raised the money to bring him over when no one else had speaks volumes about their good intentions. He wasn't discarded.

The Toronto doctors sound like they are very much aware of the risks and don't want to lose their patient in the process of operating.

Shame back to those posters who are so short-sighted not to see this.

The doctors in Toronto assessed that the procedures would be too costly and there were not enough funds raised.

The doctors in the US have much more money and resources available to them.

That is why the procedure is going to be done there. There are always risks with procedures but surgeons always take them.

I hope that they can help this kid out. I think that our doctors did what they could though, they assessed the risks and determined it was too risky.

If the American doctors want to gamble, let them go for it. Maybe they'll succeed.

Risky or not, *is* getting a shot at getting some help-- a chance that other kids in Vietnam suffering from birth defects thanks to Agent Orange aren't likely to get.

Either way, I don't think our doctors did anything unethical and in fact probably made a more ethical choice in the end.

I can't believe all the ignorant opinions I am reading on this site (and normally it is the more educated who read the CBC website!).

The boy has a VASCULAR malformation on his face -- that means it is full of pumping blood vessels and he has a large chance of bleeding to death on the operating table.

This is NOT cutting out an appendix. It's not even brain surgery. It's much much much more complicated!

Kudos to the Sick Kids surgeons for recognizing their own limitations and not being tempted to perform a dramatic, exciting, once-in-a-lifetime operation, if they couldn't do it safely.

If Son was Canadian, I am sure they would have come to the same conclusion.

This has nothing to do with money; it has to do with the required expertise and confidence to perform an extremely risky and difficult surgery.

I hope that the Boston team has this experience and I wish them and Son well. If he survives and has a reduction of his terrible malformation, it will be thanks to courageous physicians on both sides of the border.

Shame on Canada and the Toronto physicians for condemning this child to a shortened life of ridicule and misery!

His vascular anomaly IS life-threatening and should be addressed (the enlarging tumor may occlude his airway).

Kudos to the U.S. plastic surgeon and colleagues in Boston for offering to treat the orphan. This episode is a sad comment on Canada's socialist health care system.

There's no way to know who is right in this situation. Perhaps Canadian doctors are too cautious or maybe their American counterparts are not cautious enough. None of us can judge.

There is one point to be made, however, and that is that medical research programs in American universities are much better funded and equipped than those in Canada.

Like it or not, the profit motive at the core of their health care system drives their research. That's why our best and brightest medical scientists move south of the border to work.

With the research being done virtually at their doorsteps, U.S. doctors and their patients are naturally going to have earlier access to the latest treatments and techniques.

This is not an endorsement of private health care but we should recognize the reality that we do sacrifice some things in a universal public health care system. Living lower on the food chain of medical technology is one of them.

If the doctors in Toronto feel they can't do it for whatever reason, be it financial or lack or expertise then fine so be it.

But bravo for the doctors in the US for taking on the case. If they feel they can do it then who am I to argue with their expertise.

I think most of us would accept the risk associated with such a procedure if we were the ones with the condition.

One thing about all this is that with them being able to do something we can't (or won't)it sure makes the US look good from a PR standpoint. Us, not so much so.

Given the nature of this topic, I find any debate on this issue completely empty of meaning...

Do any of you have the medical background or direct access to the boy's medical chart?

I think we need to rely on the team that actually got months to inspect the kid, evaluate his situation...I would trust in their medical expertise as well.

Everyone here beside a few posters seem to know what is best for the kid...please explain how your opinion would be more logical then a panel of medical expert?

It is easy to criticize the Toronto based doctors when we know nothing about the medicine and surgery involved.

If $200,000 was raised, then money is not likely the issue. The fact that no doctor was willing to risk the boy's life given the reviewed details is a very ethical decision.

If Dr. Mulliken feels that he and his staff can perform the surgery without risking the boy's life, then they too deserve credit.

Dave from Montreal,

I did not mean to come off as insensitive, even though I knew I would seem that way, for I do see your point of view.

However, my argument merely is that Canadian facilities have difficulties keeping up with health issues here, let alone imported ones. The US is better equipped, in its private realm, since it is more accessible to people willing to pay.

That being said, I do hope this boy does get treatment, but it should not be such a media cirus as to blind us from children in Canada needing treatments far more needily.

Sorry if I came off too harsh. I do not believe you personally attacked me, for it is a debate, but I believe in Canada first, in Canada.

To A.S.
I don't need to look to the OECD to know the tax burden in Canada. I only need to look at my pay stub, sales slips, and payments to Revenue Canada every year. Yipee.

Did I say we should model the US? Nope. However, I have had experience as a consumer of US and Canadian health care and found striking differences.

In Canada, you are treated as a drain on resources, cause you are. For a modest fee (compared to the big slice taken off for taxes in Canada - I know its a "myth") I had coverage out the yang in the States. I was treated with respect and care was based on health need, not rationed. Bang for the buck, much different.

I don't think medicare should be held so sacred that we fail to look to improve it ever.

If you think medicare is wonderful and waitlists and rationing are myths, keep on dreaming. I wish you a long and healthy life so you never have to learn the truth.

Well now ... who to blame . The federal Health Minister, Tony Clement, or the talkative Minister of Health for Ontario, Gorgeous George Smitherman. No doubt both are conferring with advisers and spin doctors about an appropriate public statement on the matter.

In the meantime a gracious physician in the U.S. of A. has agreed to perform the child's needed surgical procedure. While I like to believe he is doing so out of the generosity of his heart ...... what I believe is secondary to the restorative needs of the child.

My thanks to the good doctor. Lets hope his skills result in the normalcy sought ... being achieved.

Jack i'm sorry if i've offended you, but your original words seemed much too insensitive. However i do believe it is once again necessarry to point out that 200 000 dollars were raised for this poor child.

That being said, i believe that all children deserve to have the same quality of life, I pay taxes just as you do and i hope that my money goes out to all the children we can help, life-threatening or not, Canadian or not, we have a duty as human beings to help each other.

We have the means to do so, why don't we. Therein lies the problem. And again, Jack, i hope you do not take this comment, or the previous one, as a personal attack on your beliefs.

After reading all of the information about the 10 year old Vietnamese boy, it is obvious that money was the real motive for rejection.

It is sad, if not shameful that those who are in best position to help did the very least!

The reason they are having a change of heart is that they learned of more money available, in addition to willingness of Children's Hospital in Boston to do the operation.

What happened to professional ethics? This is a low blow, not only to Toronto's Hospital for Sick Children but also to Canada as whole!

I think, the boy should go to Boston, where health appears to count more then money!

I think people need to realize that the doctors in Toronto decided it was in the best interests medically for the child not to have the surgery, as it is not a life-threatening condition.

They are the medical experts and have done the research on this case. The US hospital system doesn't have patients' best interests in mind.

It seems like we have alot of armchair specialists that post to this forum. I wonder if all you people criticizing the doctors in Toronto would also crucify them if the boy died during a medically unnecessary surgery? You bet you would.

We should commend both the Toronto & Boston doctors for stepping up to the plate on this!

Sometimes, with these rare conditions, we must send people to the right doctor(s) that can handle these problems. It's unethical (according to the doctor's creed) to cause more harm then good!

As long at this boy get's the treatment he needs, who cares where it happens!

Ryan

I'm very sorry this little boy won't be getting treatment here, particularly because the rationale at very least sounds rather callous, but we're not privy to the technical considerations Sick Kids were assessing.

To turn this, as some have done here, into a fear-mongering attack on Medicare, is pathetic and an insult to people's intelligence.

Frank and some of the others commenting here clearly won't be happy with Canadian health care until we have what our neighbours to the south have, third-rate and broken as it is. F.Y.I., the WHO, in its ranking of national health care systems rates the US 37th.

As for the whining about the onerous tax burden, it's a myth. Try facts for a change. The OECD website has a document titled “OECD in Figures, 2006-2007 Edition.” If you can read it and still complain about how heavily taxed we are, it can only be because you haven't got an ounce of intellectual honesty in you.

Sean in Dorval,and K.Trudeau have it right on this issue.I've been reading about this poor child's plight for some time.If there is a way to safely help him,I don't care who does it.

It is about assessing the risk and evaluating the possible outcomes.I can find no fault with Toronto doctors here.Their evaluation was both thorough,and well thought through.If doctors in Boston have a different opinion,I wish them well.

For this boy's sake.Even if they come to a different conclusion about the risks,and the possible outcomes,I don't see that as a reason to berate the efforts of surgeons in Toronto.

While some want to criticize Toronto doctors for not helping,I have to think they would be first in line screaming if the surgery went badly.

Finally,I am fairly conservative when it comes to economic issues,and government spending.But really,even I don't think it's at all appropriate to make this an issue about dollars and cents.

As expensive as this might be,it is a miniscule part of our health care expenditures.And,as much as I know we need to do a lot more to make our system work better for Canadians,I would be ashamed and embarrassed if a country as relatively wealthy as Canada,could not step up to help a few children like this from time to time.

I think of it as a charitable donation,and the right thing to do.My ony worry is that one day well meaning doctors might take on a risky procedure,and have it go badly.

All to often Canadians are quick to criticze even the noblist intentions because the results are less than perfect.

Wow ... some of you on this forum are either incredibly uniformed, misinformed or just plain stupid.

After months and months of studies, tests, and consultations, the team (it wasn't just one guy ... but a whole friggin team of people) stated the risk of this boy's death was greater than originally expected or anticipated.

They determined the growth was not life-threatening. However, the multiple surgeries over the course of many years would be life-threatening. They also mentioned the years he would be away from home and friends - as he would not be fit/able to travel back and forth again and again and would have to stay in Canada.

I think a great many of you on this forum are so utterly blinded by your total devotion to one political color (doesn't matter which color - you're all the friggin same!) that you totally fail to see anything beyond the regurgitation of your party leaders. Sad.

Andy said"beat up on baby boomers/seniors retiring and supposedly sucking up money for healthcare and pensions...We all paid our fair share over the years, and people from outside the country have contributed nothing to health care yet."

Maybe you did at one point but the incessant demands for and extension of tax cuts by the baby boomers/seniors has left this country with crumbling infrastructure and a health care system being run into the ground.

I hope you managed to save something to retire on. You'll probably be the last generation to enjoy such a luxurious life. Your cushy lifestyle is now ours to pay for for another generation or 5. And still they work preventing anyone from getting their foot in the door.

Having a rare disease called ichyosis[fish skin] my heart goes out to this kid.

People are cruel.

Just found out this year that a person with icthosis having a child with someone with psorasis could produce a Harlequin baby.

IF this kid has a chance at a normal life with this surgery,I really hope he gets it.

IF it is decided that the risk at a normal life is worth the chance,why not give it to him?

Growing up and looking different,my sisters and I endured lots of stares,cruel jokes and lots of experimental treatments.

In January I am seeing a genetist because my family has passed on the same genes that are showing in the next two generations from me.

Sometimes you have to take a chance at a normal life and doctors can be wrong.

Ask any of my family.We are dealing with a disease that is rare and usually is seen in boys,rarer still in girls.

The story I read on this more than a week ago stated the doctors at Sick Kids felt operating on this boy posed far more danger to him than not operating.

I guess they could just put that ethical issue aside and leaped at the chance of working on a high-profile procedure that all the world would learn about given the sad reality this young orphan is suffering.

That some people argue it's an example of the inadequacies of Canada's health care system is hardly suprising.

I doubt they will stop complaining about Canada's health care system until more than a third of Canadians have no health care coverage, just as in the US.

The Boston doctor, while claiming he can pull off the operation, has yet to even see the child in person, whereas Sick Kids doctors had physical access to him for study for several months.

But, as they say, why let facts get in the way of a good rant.

What you people do not realize is that it is not just Son Pham, it is countless other children, Canadian children as well like my child who are forced to go to the US because the surgeons at Sick Kids will not due these surgeries which are routinely done in the US, not because the surgeons are looking for publicity, because they WANT to and CAN do these surgeries that nobody else can.

Here in Canada the doctors discourage families from going to the US but will not do the surgeries here either. Time to get with the program and help all of our children. Lets not have to send one more child to the US when we have the technology to do it here. Politics and money have no place when a child is in need.

The Toronto Sick Kids reviewed the case and decided not to procede. The Boston Medical Team reviewed it and did decide to procede.

Conflicting views are a common occurance in the medical field.

The fact that the Boston team outlashed against Toronto is merely a marketing ploy for the doctors invovled to gain recognition. In the US, doctors are recognized separately, in Canada doctors are part of a system.

Simple.

This is just another tear jerker cause de jour.

To-day, $200,000 would keep 1,000 children ALIVE in Darfur for a year.

How many black children’s lives in Darfur are worth one Vietnamese cosmetic surgery?

The math of world poverty is not very palatable.

Sorry Dave from Montreal, who believes my heart is frozen from my position of not wanting to pay for a non-life threatening growth for a boy from South-East Asia. I would rather pay for the girl in Iqaluit with a heart condition that is life-threatening. But there is no media circus around that so no one cares.

I'm sure his "quality of life" is in question, but its better than having no life at all. The US doctors are not doing this out of good will. Its done for money and recognition.

I would like to see my tax dollars go to a Canadian health issue before it is extended to the world. The procedure would have cost much more than it raised. Are the US doctors not needed furthur contributions? I believe so.

And obviously children do not pay tax, that's idiocy, but children from Canada will contribute to the country long after they are treated. Not someone (man, women, or boy) from Vietnam who wants to use our facilities. The US is private, let them do it. We pay for what we have here.

"Doctors at the Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto agreed to review his case after the charity raised about $200,000 for his travel, care and medical needs.

Specialists there spent four months conducting medical tests and assessing their findings, only to announce earlier this month that it would be better for the boy not to receive any treatment.

They said there were risks to the procedure and that the growth — a birthmark that has grown since Son was born — was not life-threatening."

I wanted to post this again because people aren't reading it. It was not a decision based on finances or moral issues. They assessed him and decided the risks outweighed the gains.

Doctors in Boston weighed the risks differently.

This is not an uncommon occurrence in health care and I don't see what the issue is regardless of how some may view his quality of life. Go to medical school, specialize in pediatrics or plastics, then tell me they were wrong.

It is hard to comment on something when you are not actually there. There may have been a myriad of good clinical reasons that made the doctors in Toronto decide to not operate (ie post-op healing, developmental issues etc). T
his happens all the time to patients all over the world and is not a reflection of the Canadian medical system or expertise. I miss the Canadian system, actually. And I was very offended by the headline quotation of this story.

I am so glad our neighbour to the south has stepped up to the table.

This poor kid and his community has raised $200,000. Thats quite a lot for an ophaned child from Vietnam. He has a horrible growth on his face, comes to Canada. He is sent away, cause its not life threatening?

The kid has a football on his face!
I can only imagine the quality of life this child was in for. Would he ever find work, a wife?

I generally don't care much about issues like this, but when the Canadian doctors basically said "well he can still eat with a straw".

I was disgusted. That being said, I don't understand why he came to Canada first.

Of course the Americans would help, money talks!

It would be lovely if the American doctor could help the boy, but he has really only reviewed the boy's files. This child spent months in Canada being tested before a team of doctors decided it was not in his best interests.

I question whether or not that has changed, or if this doctor is looking for some publicity. Maybe that is cynical, but there it is.

Just for the record, like any person (Canadian resident or not) seeking a non-necessary medical procedure in Canada, the boy's treatment would not have been covered by public healthcare, thus the need for the $200,000. No one needs to get their panties in a knot over the idea that Sick Kids was going to help a foreign child with their tax dollars.

But quite frankly, with all the wasted tax dollars spent these days I can't say that the idea of using my tax dollars to change this boy's life is offensive to me in any way.

I think people need to step back a bit and look at Canada's tremendous history of treating people, particularly children, from other countries. We have an amazing record of stepping up to the plate when it comes to providing our medical expertise.

It is extremely inflamatory of the CBC to use statements like "...but turned away by a Toronto Hospital." Not to mention other writers below refering to the boy as having been denied treatment.

This child was not turned away in the negative sense that was used above nor was he denied treatment. Sick Kid's doctors made an assessment based on risk versus reward and drew their conclusions. Given the past, their conclusions wouldn't be based on politics, optics, or money. They would be based on the medical interests of the child.

For all you people that are trying to find something more sinister, give yourselves a shake.

And Frank, denying treatment is not a part of life in Canada. The issue you're probably improperly refering to is delayed access or long wait times.

Funny, I thought opposite to the 'we have lots of people on waiting lists for life-threatening illnesses' argument. Canada performs thousands of procedures for individuals whose conditions are not life-threatening (ie reconstruction surgery after mastectomy, plastic surgery after burns, total hip and knee replacements because of pain, lack of mobility, etc).

So I was confused by the argument reported by the media that sick kids said they would not treat as the condition was not life-threatening. So what?

This kid's quality of life and future potential is extremely adversely affected, so the decision should be weighed against the risks versus benefits of treatment, not whether or not the condition was life threatening.

To Jack and others who would turn Son away: If he were your child, I think you would be immensely grateful if a country with Canada's resources had the compassion to help your young son lose such a disfigurement.

Fortunately, for most Canadians that would be reward enough. The fact that he is also an orphan only makes it more compelling.

And to say that you would deny him because he doesn't contribute to Canada's healthcare system is a little silly: he is too young to work and is literally dependent on the kindness of others until he can.

Who knows, he might be so impressed by such kindness that is inspired to become a top-notch doctor himself when he grows up. But perhaps not in Canada . . .

if he's raised $200,000 and we still can't help him, then that sounds like a terribly managed healthcare system.

if you had a football-sized growth on your face, and $200,000 to help the cause, wouldn't you think one of the most helpful, most respected countries in the world could help you?

I think it's astonishing people would even turn him away.

do you think that if you had a football-sized growth on your face, you would be given the opportunities in life you've had, so to be in a position to say "this guy is mooching off our healthcare system?" No. You'd never get past a job interview that would put you in a position to then complain about somebody taking your hard-earned tax dollars.

Wake up. Then help.

Doctors are trained professionals who must use their judgement to weigh the benefits versus the hazards of any medical procedure.

Do I possess the judgement to determine which doctor is correct? No, I do not.

The doctor in Toronto would not have backed away from the proposed surgery unless he felt there were very serious reasons to do so.

The doctor in Boston would never have offered to do the operation unless he felt resonably confident he could do it well, and safely.

Is this a matter of the Boston doctor being either more competent or more willing to take chances than the Toronto doctor? Probably not.

This is simply a case of different opinions from medical professionals in the same field.

Personally, I don't care where (or even if) the surgery is performed, so long as the boy has the best chance available for a decent life.

I agree with MJM. The doctors here clearly felt that the risks outweighed the benefits for this type of surgery (and any type of surgery carries risks of complications and death let's not forget!).

If doctors in Boston feel they can do it safely, more kudos to them, but nothing bad to be said about our own doctors for choosing otherwise.

Sorry Jack but you are indeed a mean-hearted person. This is a child were speaking of, not some full grown adult.

How do you expect a 10 year-old orphan, who has the added pain of being disfigured, to contribute to the healthcare system. Should we tax him on funds he does not posses, perhaps we should put him to work in a sweat shop. You cannot seriously expect a boy of ten to contribute to the healthcare system.

Our own children do not, they are dependant on our contributions. Frankly i'm just relieved to know that there are people with hearts out there who were willing to help this poor boy.

I know its cold in Yellowknife but I never expected your heart to freeze as well. Shame on you.

It could even be a case of the American doctor willing to take a chance on a cosmetic surgery just to get the good publicity. Since healthcare isn't "free" there, this could be just like an advertisement for this doctor and his hospital.

Now the boy is truly Canadian...he has to leave the country to get proper health care! Following in the footsteps of thousands who were denyed care due to rationing, politics, or a lack of daring-do.

But is FREE!!!! You know, aside from the crippling tax burden.

They were not going to treat him in Canada, so the question is a bit misleading. Denying treatment is part of life in Canada. It is habit. The need has to be so huge and clear to get treatment, it is an obstacle that fewer and fewer can cross. That is what I think happened here. Wait till you are denied treatment for something you consider important (like living). But is free...

I have no issue with treating this poor kid, but what I DON'T agree with is when people get on here and beat up on baby boomers/seniors retiring and supposedly sucking up money for healthcare and pensions etc.as I have seen too often lately.

We all paid our fair share over the years, and people from outside the country have contributed nothing to healthcare yet.

Help this kid of course,but we need to remember our own people whose tax dollars built our healthcare system!

I'm glad that Dr. Mulliken hasn't let some political border prevent him from fulfilling his Hippocratic oath.

On the other hand maybe the Hospital for Sick Children sincerely believed that they could not help the boy, or that treating him would violate the morals of Canada's health care system (although in that case they should have announced that as their reason).

While I feel bad for this boy, there are thousands of Canadians with life-threatening conditions on waitlists in Canada.

Our publicly funded health care system is crumbling to the point where we can't provide services to everyone - so we shouldn't be providing cosmetic treatment to a patient that isn't even a resident of Canada.

On a similar note, if we did have a public-private hybrid HC system like EVERY OTHER COUNTRY IN THE WORLD except for North Korea and Cuba we would likely see more doctor retention in Canada and shorter wait times.

If you CHOOSE to participate in the private system, then thats fine. If you CHOOSE not to participate, everyone still pays taxes to fund the public system. Seems like a no-brainer to me...

Obviously very few of us here are qualified to question the Toronto decision on much more than compassionate grounds, or at least our own sense of it. Nor are most of us qualified to question the US doctor's decision.

That leaves me thinking that Toronto assessed the situation, weighed the risks against the benefits, and decided accordingly. That the Boston doctors see it differently is fine. That they will treat the boy is fine as well and, hopefully, in the boy's best interest.

What I didn't like is the Boston doctor's public criticism of the Toronto hospital's decision. If that doctor wants to pump up his ego by performing miracles, that's great! But I don't feel it was necessary to openly criticise other doctors because they saw the case differntly. That shows a lack of professional and ethical character in my opinion.

Also - what happens if things go badly and the child dies or suffers severe side effects? Is that Boston doctor and hospital liable? I wonder what their insurance company thinks about it?

Agree with jdm - this is no big deal - a group of professionals decided not to treat something, probably for many good reasons which most lay people will not understand.

While this is a sad case, not everything can be resolved in a Disney like fashion. I wish the Boston group and the little boy well, but what is the problem here?

The question that needs to be asked,is why should anyone be sentenced to have to live like this IF they can be helped?

I also couldn't understand their refusal to do this surgery after all the media coverage when he was first brought here.

I thought they were leaders in kid's health.

I wish them well. Hopefully the young man can live a life without such a disfigurement.

totally cynical comment...some surgeon in Boston wants to publish a research paper that the doctors at sick children's chose not to.

i suppose someone on this page can clarify whether or not this would have been a "free" procedure in canada. i don't know.

i know that in the u.s. it will be because of the above mentioned cynical comment. the surgical team will get the publication and the related publicity. payment enough.

Yes Jack you are a mean, cold hearted person indeed to deny a suffering child needed surgery like this. And I guess you missed the part about the $200,000 raised by charity for this poor unfortunate boy.

I'm sure not one single penny of this money came from your miserly pocket. There is a saying that what goes around, comes around. I sure hope this is true in your case.

What with the recent debates about Ontario plastic "surgeons" who are not currently required to be trained surgeons at all in order to use the title, it is probably in this child's best interest to go elsewhere.

I remember this story and was a bit puzzled by the Toronto doctors original assessment.

After seeing a picture and hearing it was only going to get larger I couldn't see how letting this boy live with it was the right decision.

My understanding is that some $200,000 had been raised to cover some of the expenses related to this boy's treatment.

I'm not sure how that money would have been spent if the boy had been treated in Canada. I also expect this is the kind of case for which people would donate quite willingly.

While I realize there are lots of people, even in our own country, who need vital care and aren't getting it, I am glad that this boy will be receiving treatment.

His case looked pretty bad and for a young person to be doomed to live like that was heart-wrenching.

Power to them if they think they can correct the problem. If Sick Kids in Toronto feels the procedure may not be viable, then fine.
No big deal otherwise.

It costs tax payers money to treat people in Canada. Costs in the US are private.

Sorry, I may be mean or whatever nasty other word some people may call me, but I don't want to pay for a Vietnamese boy to have surgery when he doesn't contribute to our healthcare system.

The US is always a viable option for those willing to pay for healthcare.