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 N.N. Fights "Werewolf" Misinfomation

In Memoriam

Many of you are aware of the little girl with a facial nevus who was quoted as having "human werewolf syndrome" by Dr. Adrian Lo, a plastic surgeon at St. Christopher’s Hospital in Philadelphia, PA. This story, filled with errors, was carried by the Associated Press and profiled by CNN on August 28, 1996. One of our members in Australia even saw it on their local TV!

The term "human werewolf syndrome" is medically incorrect. There is no mention of it in any of the 150 medical references we have in our files on giant nevi. This label is degrading and insensitive. The 18-year-old non-English-speaking teen mother appears to have been exploited for publicity reasons. One finds name-calling this bad on the playground or in the supermarket tabloids, but never by a doctor, hospital, or the mainstream media!

We contacted the persons involved and demanded a public apology. The AP reporter apologized for not verifying the accuracy of his information with another independent source, and the AP will publish another medically correct article on congenital nevi. Unfortunately, the hospital has not responded appropriately. The doctor ignored 2 telephone messages and 2 letters. The public relations representative at St. Christopher’s hung up the phone on us!

Nonetheless, we feel the incorrect use of the term "werewolf" by this doctor and the media needs to be stopped. We would like the hospital to receive an avalanche of letters objecting to it. Please write to the hospital, telling them how you feel about yourself or your child being branded a "werewolf." Feel free to ask us for appropriate addresses. Also please write your local newspaper and TV stations which carried the story. We already have enough problems in life coping with a nevus and living under the shadow of death because of it. We shouldn’t have to endure being called names like "werewolf" from a renegade doctor!

--The Editors BJ & Kelly

(Note: The AP published a corrected article on Nov 28, 1996. We gained about 30 new members as a result. Many were so joyful to find they weren’t alone anymore. The doctor never responded to us. The hospital responded by threatening us with a lawsuit.)

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