Extraordinary Measures Page #2

Starting compressions.

NURSE 2:

I'll switch her out.

Over here, please quickly.

AILEEN:
Hang in there, Megan.

Hang in there, baby, okay?

I need to bag her.

JOHN:
Aileen?

Some room right there.

DOCTOR 2:

Let us in, all right?

Please, Mrs. Crowley, let...

Stop it!

Let us help her!

Please... Megan!

Aileen.

DOCTOR 2:
Epinephrine, 0.1 mils per kig.

NURSE 1:
Got it.

DOCTOR 1:

Still no pulse. No reading.

Forget the weight, come on,

get it in there! Aileen, Aileen.

NURSE 1:
0.1 epi.

It's all right.

Come on, Megs.

Come on. Come on. IV push.

DOCTOR 1:
Okay, just give

the epi a couple seconds.

NURSE 1:

Still non-responsive.

All right, charge the defib.

NURSE 3:
Charging.

Your daughter

is some fighter.

She's gonna be okay.

Oh, my God.

Now, look, she's still a very

sick girl, obviously,

but her vital

signs have improved

and I'm cautiously optimistic.

So, I guess you could say

we dodged that blessing, huh?

Mrs. Crowley,

these came for Megan.

Thanks so much. Thank you.

PETE:
Hey, John?

Huh?

Any time you're ready, man.

You gonna tell us

about the product launch?

John, you okay?

I have to go.

John.

Where you going?

Nebraska.

Excuse me, please.

There's a gentleman here to see you.

Best make yourself

comfortable, hon.

Oh, dear.

Sir, sir. That's Dr. Stonehill.

He just left, I'm sorry.

Thank you.

Yeah.

Dr. Stonehill!

Hey, Dr. Stonehill!

(SPORTSCASTERS

CHATTERING ON TV)

Dr. Stonehill?

Yeah?

I'm John Crowley.

Okay.

Didn't you get any of my messages?

What messages?

I left you 3 or 4 messages

in the last month,

and you even hung up

on me the night before last.

What the hell are you talking about?

I never hung up on you.

Dr. Stonehill,

Oh, Jesus.

Well, I'm sorry.

A terrible disease,

but, hell, you shouldn't have

come all this way

without talking to me.

I do research, son.

I don't see patients.

Well, it's your research

that I'm interested in.

I've read all the journal articles

on Pompe disease,

and all the researchers

out there say that

your work holds

the most promise.

Get to the point, son.

What do you want from me?

We almost lost my

daughter last week.

I need to hear

about your research.

STONEHILL:
Your kids have

a genetic disease.

They're missing an enzyme

which metabolizes a certain kind

of sugar, glycogen.

It's defective

in Pompe patients.

So, this sugar builds up

in the muscle cells,

especially in the heart,

the skeletal muscles, the diaphragm,

which is why they have

a hard time breathing.

Yeah, I know.

I know a lot about that.

Everybody's making

an enzyme,

but you can infuse kids all day long

with their enzyme,

and it's not

gonna do any good

'cause it's not gonna

get into their cells.

Understand what I'm saying?

Yeah, so that means that

if you put the sugar...

Don't interrupt.

Sorry.

I'm making a different version

of this enzyme.

My enzyme has a biological marker,

mannose 6-phosphate.

I'm the only one that's cloned the gene

for phosphotransferase.

I'm the only one who's cloned the gene

for uncovering enzyme,

so I can get more mannose 6-phosphate

onto the lysosomal protein,

and I can deliver a more effective

amount of enzyme

into the cells.

That's why people

are citing my work.

That's why you read my name

in the literature.

I can get more

enzyme into the cells.

What's the matter, Sal?

Not up on your glycobiology?

I thought Doc was

just your nickname.

No, that man's a genius. He's on

the verge of a scientific breakthrough.

Wow. Who knew?

I'm not on the

verge of anything, kid.

This is a theory,

not a therapy.

I'm just an academic.

You got any idea how

shitty my funding is?

No.

University of Nebraska

pays their football coach

more money in a year

than my entire science budget.

Nobody's paying

attention to this work.

Half my grants

don't get approved.

I don't have the money to make

my theory into a useable medicine.

How old are your kids?

Look, do yourself a favor.

Go home and spend time with your kids.

Enjoy 'em while they're still here.

How much?

How much what?

How much money would it take

to prove your theory,

to create your version

of the medicine?

I'd need half a million bucks

just to fund the lab work.

That's why you need me.

I need you? Why?

Because I'm the founder of the

Pompe Foundation for Children.

I've been working on this disease

for 10 years.

I have never

heard of you guys.

That's because

we're relatively new.

We're just in

the gearing-up phase.

How soon do you

need a grant?

Now would be good.

Well, not all the money's in place,

but it will be, and soon.

This is a very

exciting time.

JOHN:
Thanks.

DRIVER:
Thank you, sir. Have a good day.

Hey.

You okay?

Did you get my messages?

Your messages?

You suddenly walk

out of the meeting

and fly to Nebraska

without talking to me about it,

and you think

messages make it okay?

I'm sorry.

My God, John.

I wanna find a miracle

as much as you do, okay?

But how could you put

your job in jeopardy?

Aileen.

How exactly

do we pay $40,000 a month in healthcare

if you lose your insurance?

Honey, come on.

Look, I'm not gonna lose my job.

Oh, really?

Pete called here twice last night

to ask if you were okay.

You know, mentally.

(SCOFFS)

I'll just... I'll call, and I'll

smooth that one over.

Yeah, no sh*t.

(SIGHS)

I'm sorry.

Something in me

just kind of snapped.

That night at the hospital, when we

thought that we were losing her,

I prayed that if it was her time,

she'd go quickly,

without so much suffering.

But morning came,

and she pulled through.

Her eyes,

so determined, so defiant.

The fight in her.

(SIGHS)

Was he worth it?

This Stonehill guy?

He's really eccentric,

but his science

is way ahead of

everybody else's.

He's definitely the one to put

our money on.

(CHUCKLES)

If we had any.

I promised him

that we'd raise some,

because he's got this conference

up here next month,

and I said I'd have

a check ready for him.

How much?

That's all?

Thousand.

Is it $500 or $1,000?

$500,000.

By next month.

(CHUCKLES)

Sweetheart, are you totally insane?

Apparently.

AILEEN:
We're holding our first fundraiser

on the 23rd at the school,

and we would love if

you and Frank could join us.

Ready for your spelling test?

I'm gonna nail it.

Okay. Good luck.

My name's John Crowley.

I'm calling from Oregon,

and I got your name from the

Atlanta-area Pompe parents' group.

Yeah.

AILEEN:
And I was so sorry

not to see you at the reunion

because you were one of my most

favorite people in high school.

(CHUCKLES)

Anyway, John and I

are starting this foundation.

Hey, Dad? Dad.

No, you know what I mean.

Just make it right.

Dad?

Can't you see

I'm on the phone?

Okay, well, tell me he told you.

Dad!

No, I'm gonna have

to call you back.

I can't talk. All right, bye.

Yeah, what is it?

I sold my RipStik.

Okay.

Is it enough to give to Megan

and Patrick's foundation?

Yeah, it's more than enough.

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