Michael Jackson...Farrah Fawcett

As a medical and lifestyle journalist, I often try to find a health message in every story that comes across my desk. Farrah Fawcett recently asked at the end of her documentary, "what is your fight?" In her case, cancer invaded her body, and the media tried to invade her privacy. She fought both with an incredible tenacity, seeking both traditional and alternative treatments for her battle against cancer (what health practitioners often call the 1:2 punch); then proactively sought to undermine the invasion of her medical privacy, by herself sharing details of her diagnosis, and then helping to snare those at UCLA who sought to leak private medical details. Her fight was for dignity and extended quality of life.

Michael Jackson's fight was against the pain of a burned scalp, broken leg, painful back AND against a lost chidhood that he seemed to forever pursue. His talent they say, will probably never be surpassed; his demons, obviously may now, never be conquered. I live close by to his family compound in Encino, and the helicopters relentlessly circle over his home. I imagine that one of the outcomes of his story may again be that of Anna Nicole Smith - enablers who were giving him serious medications, without closely monitoring the mixture of those drugs. He may have needed these medications, but when you mix anti-depressant drugs, pain killers and other prescription medications, there has to be clear respect and a "line in the sand" as to dosage, frequency of use and the understanding of their interactions.

Cardiac arrest can occur due to a variety of causes. In Farrah's case, her liver was failing and after that comes multiple organ failure. In Michael's case, we may not know for several weeks the cause of his heart's failure. What we can learn is "to fight our battles" be they health battles, work challenges, relationship struggles. And if we are faced with health challenges - be they physical or mental - we need to "fight the fight." At the end of the day all we have are our days on earth.