And the more positive a doctor is when telling a patient about the placebo he is prescribing, the more likely it is to do that patient good.

ECONOMIST: Alternative medicine: Think yourself better | The

Both accounts also refer to the devastating but erroneous news from the prison doctor that she had tested positive for HIV, although her diary presents a more relaxed person at this point.

BBC: Amanda Knox and prison life

Another doctor contacted the MPS for advice about a patient who had been diagnosed HIV positive, and who was adamant in his refusal to inform his wife, despite the doctor's best efforts to persuade him to do so.

BBC: When do you break a patient's confidence?

He admitted to Ms. Winfrey that the prescription for the cream was written after the positive test and backdated by a doctor to make it appear as if he had already been taking it.

WSJ: Lance Armstrong Admits to Doping, 'One Big Lie'

In support of October being Breast Cancer Awareness month, read this emotionally inspiring interview with Karen Vaniver, MD to find out how having cancer made her a better doctor, why she believes cancer can be used as a stimulus for positive life growth, and her advice for women diagnosed with breast cancer.

FORBES: Cancer Made Me Nice: An Interview With Survivor Karen Vaniver, MD