Controversy Charisma Canada New Brunswick Diagnosis ? Social Contagion
Posted by:
corboy
()
Date: January 12, 2026 07:52AM
'The answer cannot be nothing': The battle over Canada's mystery brain disease
Joel Gunter,senior international reporter, New Brunswickand
Nadine Yousif,senior Canada reporter, New Brunswick January 10 11 2026
[www.bbc.com]
No, There Isn't a Mysterious Brain Disease Spreading in Canada
Health
14 May 2025
By David Nield
[www.sciencealert.com]
Reddit discussion
[www.reddit.com]
Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 01/12/2026 07:55AM by corboy.
Joel Gunter,senior international reporter, New Brunswickand
Nadine Yousif,senior Canada reporter, New Brunswick January 10 11 2026
[www.bbc.com]
No, There Isn't a Mysterious Brain Disease Spreading in Canada
Health
14 May 2025
By David Nield
[www.sciencealert.com]
Reddit discussion
[www.reddit.com]
Quote
drewdrewmd
•
19h ago
Thanks for sharing. Much better than some other international coverage of this story (ahem… The Guardian).
I’m a Canadian pathologist who has followed this story from the very beginning.
The neurologist’s original description was of a rapidly progressive neurodegenerative disease with wasting and dementia. The fact that some of his “cluster” patients (whether identified by him or self-diagnosed) are alive years later and can give media interviews proves that, in fact, while they may have neurological problems, they are nothing like his rapidly deteriorating supposed index patients.
The very first objective study of any of these patients— brain autopsies on six or eight of them— definitively ruled out a prion disease and more importantly provided mundane (if terrible) diagnoses like Alzheimer and metastatic cancer.
This story still has legs in Canada, especially among the conspiracy-theory-minded and mainstream-medicine-skeptical. There was some other funny business happening in public health in New Brunswick at the time that added to the suspicion (firing of the chief medical officer of health Dr Cleary), and while that may certainly have been politically motivated I don’t think it was part of any larger-scale medical coverup. Small potatoes politicians in Canada could never.
51
mustbeaoup
•
16h ago
Thanks for the insight! It seems Marrero is determined to be ‘right’ rather than do whats in the best interest of his patients.
The idea that one lady is considering assisted dying, with the support of Marrero, is really quite worrying.
8
Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 01/12/2026 07:55AM by corboy.
Re: Controversy Charisma Canada New Brunswick Diagnosis ? Social Contagion
Posted by:
grattoir
()
Date: January 23, 2026 02:50PM
corboy Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> 'The answer cannot be nothing': The battle over
> Canada's mystery brain disease
>
> Joel Gunter,senior international reporter, New
> Brunswickand
> Nadine Yousif,senior Canada reporter, New
> Brunswick January 10 11 2026
>
> [www.bbc.com]
>
> No, There Isn't a Mysterious Brain Disease
> Spreading in Canada
> Health
> 14 May 2025
> By David Nield
>
>
> [www.sciencealert.com]
>
> Reddit discussion
>
> [www.reddit.com]
>
>
What strikes me is how familiar this looks from a cult-dynamics angle, even though it’s happening in medicine.
You’ve got a charismatic figure, a vague “cluster,” and a powerful story that explains people’s suffering while framing skepticism as denial or a cover-up. That kind of narrative spreads fast, especially among people who already feel dismissed. It doesn’t mean anyone is faking—social contagion is about how distress gets organized around a compelling explanation.
The most troubling part is how uncertainty is being used to justify extreme conclusions. “We don’t know” should lead to caution, not despair or irreversible decisions. That ethical flip is something you see over and over again in high-control groups, just without the religious label.
Reading more than posting
-------------------------------------------------------
> 'The answer cannot be nothing': The battle over
> Canada's mystery brain disease
>
> Joel Gunter,senior international reporter, New
> Brunswickand
> Nadine Yousif,senior Canada reporter, New
> Brunswick January 10 11 2026
>
> [www.bbc.com]
>
> No, There Isn't a Mysterious Brain Disease
> Spreading in Canada
> Health
> 14 May 2025
> By David Nield
>
>
> [www.sciencealert.com]
>
> Reddit discussion
>
> [www.reddit.com]
>
>
Quote
> drewdrewmd
> •
> 19h ago
>
> Thanks for sharing. Much better than some other
> international coverage of this story (ahem… The
> Guardian).
>
> I’m a Canadian pathologist who has followed this
> story from the very beginning.
>
> The neurologist’s original description was of a
> rapidly progressive neurodegenerative disease with
> wasting and dementia. The fact that some of his
> “cluster” patients (whether identified by him or
> self-diagnosed) are alive years later and can give
> media interviews proves that, in fact, while they
> may have neurological problems, they are nothing
> like his rapidly deteriorating supposed index
> patients.
>
> The very first objective study of any of these
> patients— brain autopsies on six or eight of them—
> definitively ruled out a prion disease and more
> importantly provided mundane (if terrible)
> diagnoses like Alzheimer and metastatic cancer.
>
> This story still has legs in Canada, especially
> among the conspiracy-theory-minded and
> mainstream-medicine-skeptical. There was some
> other funny business happening in public health in
> New Brunswick at the time that added to the
> suspicion (firing of the chief medical officer of
> health Dr Cleary), and while that may certainly
> have been politically motivated I don’t think it
> was part of any larger-scale medical coverup.
> Small potatoes politicians in Canada could never.
> 51
> mustbeaoup
> •
> 16h ago
>
> Thanks for the insight! It seems Marrero is
> determined to be ‘right’ rather than do whats in
> the best interest of his patients.
>
> The idea that one lady is considering assisted
> dying, with the support of Marrero, is really
> quite worrying.
> 8
>
What strikes me is how familiar this looks from a cult-dynamics angle, even though it’s happening in medicine.
You’ve got a charismatic figure, a vague “cluster,” and a powerful story that explains people’s suffering while framing skepticism as denial or a cover-up. That kind of narrative spreads fast, especially among people who already feel dismissed. It doesn’t mean anyone is faking—social contagion is about how distress gets organized around a compelling explanation.
The most troubling part is how uncertainty is being used to justify extreme conclusions. “We don’t know” should lead to caution, not despair or irreversible decisions. That ethical flip is something you see over and over again in high-control groups, just without the religious label.
Reading more than posting
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