For a few years now, my husband has had a lump in one ear that oozes fluid (sometimes blood). It hurts all the time and he can barely hear out of that ear anymore. The GP sent him to an ear specialist who said, "Oh, you are 50 years old and you are just having normal hearing loss from aging!"

I am thinking, "Excuse me????? Did his medical degree come from the University of Cracker Jacks?" But my husband accepted this bizarre diagnosis. The GP continues to be puzzled by the ear, and says, "It doesn't seem right to me, but if the specialist thinks it's OK, I guess he must know something I don't!"

It's probably way too late to save his hearing now, but maybe something can be done for the oozing and pain. If he sleeps on that side, the pillow gets damp from the leaking liquid.

Has anybody else even been told that 50-year-olds should expect to go deaf from old age? That sounds like an incredibly ignorant statement.