At first, I was confused by this statement, given the data..
> "...modern medicine may be doing more to complicate the end of life than to prolong or improve it"
1900
65 -> +12
85 -> +4
2007
65 -> +19
85 -> +6
The engineer in me said, but we've improved! But then I realized that evaluating life by measuring in years is like reviewing tech products by looking at spec sheets.
"But it has more megapixels!? Aren't megapixels what we want?"
The improvement at the upper end isn't even that much in absolute terms. I guess it's hard to imagine accurately, but I think that when I'm 85, I'm going to be a lot more worried about the quality of my next few years, rather than whether there are going to be 4 or 6 of them. Four high-quality years would be far preferable to six questionable ones. (Of course, six high-quality ones would be even better, but if I had to choose, I'd choose quality.)
Forget cost. The important question is quality. In cameras, extra megapixels can mean the sensor sites are so small that they have a harder time distinguishing electronic noise from actual light, leading to worse pictures. Likewise, what good is getting me 10 more years if I can't do anything with them because they're spent in total agony.
It'd be nice to have the option to choose to spend that million on pursuing a bucket list, or on a horrendous treatment with a single-digit success rate.
You might think "It has improved", which is correct, but people seem to think it has doubled. The numbers show that in reality old age is about as long.
I'm pretty sure it has improved. People don't treat their diseases and accidents at home themselves. Old people can quite often move all their limbs, walk without support, still have at least some teeth and so on. All improvement of modern medicine. It doesn't make us live twice as long but you can't say it only creates suffering either.
> "...modern medicine may be doing more to complicate the end of life than to prolong or improve it"
The engineer in me said, but we've improved! But then I realized that evaluating life by measuring in years is like reviewing tech products by looking at spec sheets."But it has more megapixels!? Aren't megapixels what we want?"
Reality is far more subtle.