The Health of the First Ladies: Medical Histories from Martha Washington to Michelle Obama (51 page)

14.
Ford with Chase, 204, 210.

15.
Greene, 49, enumerated 45,000 letters and cards; Jeffrey S. Ashley, “The Social and Political Influence of Betty Ford: Betty Bloomer Blossoms,”
White House Studies
101, no. 8 (Winter 2001), estimated 55,000 cards and letters; Greene, 49: Happy Rockefeller.

16.
Ashley.

17.
Tasha N. Dubriwny, “Constructing Breast Cancer in the News: Betty Ford and the Evolution of the Breast Cancer Patient,”
Journal of Communication Inquiry
33, no. 2 (April 2009), 104–125; “New Attitudes Ushered in by Betty Ford,”
New York Times
, October 17, 1987.

18.
Greene, 52.

19.
Ford with Chase,
The Times of My Life
; Betty Ford with Chris Chase,
Betty: A Glad Awakening
(New York: Jove, 1988).

20.
Ford with Chase:
Betty:
A Glad Awakening
, 37; Greene, 3–4: father and brother were alcoholics; Ford with Chase,
The Times of My Life
, 41–5; Greene, 12–13; first husband was a heavy drinker.

21.
Ford with Chase,
Betty:
A Glad Awakening
, 38: “In Washington there is more alcohol consumed per capita than in any other city in the United States.”

22.
Ford with Chase,
The Times of My Life
, 10.

23.
Ibid., 134: “quit drinking for a couple of years”; Greene, 25: “I don’t remember when I went from being a social drinker to being preoccupied with drinking, but I am sure it was pretty gradual.”

24.
Ford, Betty, http:///www.fofweb.com/Hiytory/HistRefMain.asp?Pin=firstladies34 (accessed July 26, 2013; Ford with Chase,
Betty:
A Glad Awakening
, 43–4: “I was hospitalized for stomach trouble. The doctors checked stomach, gallbladder, kidneys, and they couldn’t find anything wrong. Then they brought in a specialist who diagnosed my illness as pancreatitis. He said: ‘Young lady, if I were you, I would just stay on the other side of the room from the bar for a while.’ I don’t even remember how or why I started drinking again.”

25.
Ford with Chase,
Betty:
A Glad Awakening
, 128–9, 131, 133; Greene, 24.

26.
Greene, 3.

27.
Ford with Chase,
The Times of My Life
, 135–6.

28.
Greene, 68.

29.
Ford with Chase,
Betty:
A Glad Awakening
, 45: “It was better in the White House”; Greene, 69–70: drinking in the White House.

30.
Greene, 102–4.

31.
Ibid., 104–8.

32.
Ibid., 108.

33.
“Betty Ford, Former First Lady, Dies at 93,”
New York Times
, July 8, 2011.

34.
Nancy Reagan, Biography, National First Ladies’ Library and Museum, http://www.firstladies.org/biographies/firstladies.aspx?biography=41 (accessed July 17, 2013).

35.
Craig Hart,
A Genealogy of the Wives of American Presidents and Their First Two Generations of Descent
(Jefferson, NC: McFarland, 2004), 181: Nancy Reagan’s parents and birth; Nancy Reagan, National First Ladies’ Museum: for her mother’s career, second marriage and death.

36.
Nancy Reagan Biography, National First Ladies’ Library; Nancy Reagan with William Novak,
My Turn: The Memoirs of Nancy Reagan
(New York: Random House, 1989), 63.

37.
“Chronological History of ACS Recommendations for the Early Detection of Cancer,” http://www.cancer.org/healthy/findcancerearly/cancerscreeningguidelines.html (accessed July 19, 2013): American Cancer Society guidelines.

38.
James G. Benze, Jr.,
Nancy Reagan
(Lawrence: University Press of Kansas, 2005), 111–2; Reagan,
My Turn
, 285.

39.
Reagan,
My Turn
, 286–7.

40.
Thomas R. Russell, “Remembering Oliver H. Beahrs,”
Oncology Times
28, no. 7 (April 10, 2006): 33–34, for Beahrs’ biography; Reagan,
My Turn
, 286, for Nancy Reagan’s comfort with him as a physician.

41.
Oliver H. Baehrs, “The Medical History of President Ronald Reagan,”
Journal of the American College
178 (January 1994), 86–96; “President Is Well After Operation to Ease Prostate,”
New York Times
, January 6, 1987.

42.
Reagan,
My Turn
, 292, for discussion with Marlin Fitzwater, the presidential press secretary.

43.
“Mastectomy Seen as Extreme for Small Tumor,”
New York Times
, October 18, 1987, for specifics regarding Mrs. Reagan’ cancer; Reagan,
My Turn
, 296: Involvement of John Hutton; “In Breast Cancer, Treatment Dilemma Persists,”
Washington Post
, October 20, 1987: Prognosis close to 100 percent.

44.
“More Women Seek X-Rays of Breasts,”
New York Times
, November 1, 1987, reported the 30 percent to 50 percent estimate; Dorothy S. Lane, Anthony P. Polednak and Mary Ann Burg, “The Impact of Media Coverage of Nancy Reagan’s Experience on Breast Cancer Screening,”
American Journal of Public Health
70, no. 11 (November 1989): 1551–2. This article with a two-year retrospective determined a more modest 12 percent increment; “Nancy Reagan Urges Breast Checkups,”
Chicago Tribune
, October 21, 1987. Spokeswoman Elaine Crispen released the statement.

45.
“First Lady Welcomed Home by Crowd, Jazz Combo,”
Los Angeles Times
, October 23, 1987;

“First Lady Marks First Year Since Cancer Surgery,”
Los Angeles Times
, October 18, 1988.

46.
“Mastectomy Seen as Extreme for Small Tumor,”
New York Times
, October 18, 1987. Rose Kushner, executive director of the Breast Cancer Advisory Center in Kensington, Maryland, added, “I am not recommending that anyone do it her way”; “In Breast Cancer, Treatment Dilemma Persists,”
Washington Post
, October 20, 1987, pointed out that the recommended surgery was a lumpectomy; Letter to the editor, “Mastectomy Is Not the Only Choice,”
Chicago Tribune
, October 31, 1987.

47.
“Nancy Reagan Defends Her Decision to Have Mastectomy,”
New York Times
, March 5, 1988.

48.
Ann Butler Nattinger, et al.: “Effect of Nancy Reagan’s Mastectomy on Choice of Surgery for Breast Cancer by U.S. Women,”
Journal of the American Medical Association
279, no. 10 (1998): 762–766.

49.
“Nancy Reagan Has Tumor Removed from Her Face,”
New York Times
, August 30, 1990; “Nancy Reagan Hospitalized with Broken Pelvis,”
People
, October 15, 2008; Paula Spencer Scott, “Nancy Reagan’s Fall Wasn’t Her First,” http://www.caring.com/blogs/fyi-daily/nancy-reagans-fall-wasnt-her-first (accessed July 14, 2013); “Frail Nancy Reagan Soldiers On,”
National Enquirer
, March 4, 2013.

50.
“Doctors Remove Benign Lump from Breast of Rosalynn Carter,”
Toledo Blade
, April 29, 1977.

51.
“Mrs. Carter ‘Just Fine’ Following Minor Surgery,”
Ellensburg Daily Record
, August 15, 1977.

1.
Barbara Bush,
Barbara Bush: A Memoir
(New York: Scribner, 1994), 283.

2.
George W. Bush,
Decision Points
(New York: Crown, 2010).

3.
B. Bush,
A Memoir
, 27, 36, 38, 47, 53–4.

4.
Ibid., 39–49
.

5.
Thyroid Newsmakers: Barbara Bush, http.//www.coulditbemythyroid.com/Book-Exprts/nsmaker-BBush.html (April 18, 2011).

6.
B. Bush,
A Memoir
, 283.

7.
“Barbara Bush Says Thyroid Condition Caused Weight Loss,”
New York Times
, March 30, 1989: “big, puffy, horrible eyes”; B. Bush,
A Memoir
, 283, for Dr. Lee’s reaction. “I did not want pop eyes.”

8.
New York Times
, March 30, 1989, “wacko”; B. Bush,
A Memoir
, 283: “berserk.”

9.
B. Bush
A Memoir
, 284;
New York Times
, March 30, 1989; “Barbara Bush Being Treated for Graves’ Disease, a Thyroid Disorder,”
Los Angeles Times
, March 30, 1989.

10.
“Form of Cortisone Prescribed for First Lady’s Eye Ailment,”
New York Times
, August 23, 1989.

11.
Graves’ disease, Diffuse thyrotoxic goiter, PubMed Health, http://www.nlm.nih.gov/pubmedhealth/PMH0001398/ (accessed June 5, 2011); Rebecca Bahn, “Unlocking the Mysteries of Graves’ Ophthalmopathy,”
Newsletter of the Graves’ Disease Foundation
(Fall 2009); Seema Kumar, Sarah Nadeem, et al: “A Stimulatory TSH Receptor Antibody Enhances Adipogenesis Via Phosphoinositide 3-Kinase Activation in Orbital Preadipocytes from Patients with Graves’ Ophthalmopathy,”
Journal of Molecular Endocrinology
46, no. 3 (June 2011), 156–163.

12.
Peter Smyth, PA: “Graves, Robert James (1796–1853),”
Milestones in European Thyroidology
. European Thyroid Association, http://www.eurothyroid.com/about/met/graves.php (accessed June 9, 2011).

13.
New York Times
, August 23, 1989.

14.
“Stable, Barbara Bush Learned, After Two Hours of Tests,”
Orlando Sentinel
, November 29, 1989; “Radiation Therapy Is Weighed for Mrs. Bush,”
New York Times
, December 1, 1989.

15.
B. Bush,
A Memoir
, 353.

16.
“First Lady Begins Radiation Treatment,”
Washington Post
, January 4, 1990; “First Lady Starts Radiation Therapy for Eyes,”
New York Times
, January 4, 1990.

17.
B. Bush,
A Memoir
, 264–89.

18.
Devin Dwyer, “Barbara Bush May Be Released from Hospital,”
ABC News
, March 30, 2010; Devin Dwyer, Ann Compton and Gina Sunseri: “Former First Lady Barbara Bush Had ‘Mild Relapse’ of Graves’ Disease,”
ABC News
, March 31, 2010.

19.
Lawrence Altman, “Every Time, Bush Says ‘Ah,’ Second Guessers of His Doctor Cry ‘Aha,’”
New York Times
, February 18, 1992; “Bush’s Physicians Say Thyroid Gland Disrupted Heart,”
New York Times
, May 8, 1991.

20.
Dennis Breo, “Tough Talk from the President’s Physician,”
Journal of the American Medical Association
262, no. 9 (November 17, 1989): 2742–5.

21.
B. Bush,
A Memoir
, 411–2.

22.
“Barbara Bush to Aid Group in Boston Speech Planned for Thyroid Fund,”
Boston Globe
, July 21, 1992.

23.
Graves’ Disease Foundation: Onsite Support Bulletin Board, post by Dianne Smith November 15, 1996, http://www.ngdf.org/phpBB/ngdf/viewtopic.php?f+4&t+372 (accessed June 7, 2011): “They both do public service announcements for the Thyroid Society here in Houston”; Nancy Hord Patterson, telephone interview, June 13, 2011: information regarding the Graves’ Disease Foundation. Both Bushes were made honorary members while they still inhabited the White House.

24.
Graves’ Disease Foundation: Onsite Support Bulletin Boards, posts by Gwen Shannon, June 8, 1997, http:/ngdf.org/phpBB/ngdf/viewtopic.php?f=4&t=3185 (accessed June 7, 2011); Nancy Hord Patterson, telephone interview, June 13, 2011.

25.
Barbara Bush,
Reflections: Life After the White House
(New York: Scribner, 2003).

26.
Ibid., 11–12.

27.
Ibid., 12.

28.
Ibid., 35: for Dr. Orton; “Barbara Bush Hospitalized for Pneumonia in Texas,”
New York Times
, December 31, 2013: for miscellaneous hospitalizations at Houston’s Methodist Hospital.

29.
Connie Mariano,
The White House Doctor: My Patients Were Presidents: A Memoir
(New York: St. Martin’s, 2010), 190.

30.
Hillary Clinton,
Living History
(New York: Scribner, 2003), 258–259.

31.
Ibid., 148.

32.
“Court Rules That First Lady Is ‘De Facto’ Federal Official,”
New York Times
, June 23, 1993.

33.
Clinton, 84.

34.
Mariano, 188–190.

35.
Clinton, 482.

36.
Mariano, 188–190.

37.
Ibid.; Clinton, 482.

38.
Deep vein thrombosis (DVT), Mayo Clinic, http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/deep-vein-thrombois/DS01005 (accessed August 26, 2013); “Deep Vein Thrombosis Overview,” Society of Interventional Radiology, http://www.sirweb.org/patients/deep-vein-thrombosis/ (accessed August 26, 2013).

39.
Clinton, 482; Deep Vein thrombosis (DVT): Mayo Clinic listed causes of DVT.

40.
Clinton, 482; Mariano, 188–190.

41.
Mariano, 190.

42.
Mariano, personal communication, July 1, 2013.

43.
Deppisch,
The White House Physician
. For a review of the White House Medical Unit, read Chapter 11, 150–158.

44.
Richard Tubb, personal interview, August 11, 2011.

45.
Mariano, personal communication.

46.
“Fear for Hillary Clinton as She Is Rushed to Hospital with Blood Clot Just Three Weeks After Suffering Concussion,”
London Daily Mail
December 31, 2012; “Hillary Clinton Recovering at Home Following Concussion Caused by Fall,”
London Guardian
, December 15, 2012; “Hillary Clinton Making ‘Excellent Progress’ Doctors Say,”
USA Today
, January 1, 2013.

47.
“Laura Bush: Skin Cancer ‘No Big Deal,’”
Washington Post
, December 19, 2006.

48.
Laura Bush,
Spoken from the Heart
(New York: Scribner, 2010), 4–6, for her mother’s pregnancy history, 90, for Laura Bush’s professional career.

49.
Ibid., 105.

50.
Ibid., 106–7.

51.
Jim Rutenberg, “The First Lady’s Skin Cancer,”
Caucus
, http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2006/12/19/the-first-ladys-skin-cancer (accessed August 31, 2013); James Joyner, “Laura Bush Skin Cancer Flap,” Outside the Beltway, December 19, 2006, http://www.outsidethebeltway.com/laura_bush_skin_cancer_flap/ (accessed June 19, 2011); “White House Stayed Quiet on Laura Bush Cancer Surgery,” (
UK)
Independent
, December 20, 2006; “Laura Bush: Skin Cancer ‘No Big Deal,’”
Washington Post
, December 19, 2006; Bush,
Spoken from the Heart
, 182.