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This is The Nocturness. Uncertainty in Medicine. I'm Emily Silverman. This is the final

episode of our series on Uncertainty. And as we wrap up, we're turning our focus to a different

kind of uncertainty, the kind that doesn't come from a tough diagnosis or a difficult conversation

in the exam room,

but instead comes from something bigger, the healthcare system itself.

Specifically, we're looking at one of the most destabilizing and opaque forces in American medicine.

Health insurance.

It shapes everything, from how clinicians interact with patients in the exam

room to whether a treatment is approved. Here, the uncertainty isn't about the diagnosis or

the treatment itself. It's about whether the insurance will cover it, and whether that coverage

will come in time. Today, we bring you a story about a family caught in that kind of uncertainty and how they refused to accept it.

Later in the episode, I'll sit down with Alexa Miller, our uncertainty correspondent, to reflect on what we've learned over the course of putting together the series.

And finally, we'll close the series with one final voice, a voice that

speaks about accepting uncertainty rather than fighting it. But first, meet Ed. Oh yeah, my name is

Ed Stratton. I live in Ball One, Missouri. Well, it started back in March of 2019 when out of the blue,

I just started passing blood. And then from there, I got admitted in the hospital where they

diagnosed me with stage four colon cancer. This is Ed Stratton. He's a sales rep for a medical

device company. He loves golf and he lives in a suburb outside of St. Louis.

...