El aceite de Lorenzo (Lorenzo´s Oil) (1992). Enfermedad: realidad mirada desde distintos puntos de vista

Abstract

Lorenzo lives with his parents in Africa. He is a happy kid. His family moves to Washington. After three months living in Washington, teachers say that Lorenzo has a bad behavior in school and he begins to loose balance. In Holy Week (1984), he stays in hospital making tests on him and they diagnose that he is suffering from adrenoleukodystrophy (ALD). It consists in a high level of fats in blood, what leads to brain degeneration. This is a genetic metabolism mistake and is not a common illness, with an unstoppable progression that leads to dead in two years. It affects males, there is no treatment. There is an experimental treatment based on a diet low in very-long-chain fatty acids. But his parents don´t see the results. They decide to take an experimental treatment of chemotherapy but they don´t see the results either. They find the ALD Foundation. They resolve to study biochemistry, microbiology…They find that every scientist studies in an isolated way, so they propose to celebrate a symposium for exposing every discovery as a whole. After studying a lot they find an oil that is a mixture of erucic acid and oleic acid that stops the illness. But they have to fight against the Foundation, doctors that investigate and they have to look for companies that want to help them. Lorenzo gets his oil.