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CNN Talkback Live

Interview with Fran Drescher; Will Carter's Visit Help U.S. Relations with Cuba?; What is the Deal with Botox?

Aired May 13, 2002 - 15:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
ARTHEL NEVILLE, HOST: Hello, everybody. Welcome to TALKBACK LIVE. I'm Arthel Neville.

How do you like the warm reception former President Jimmy Carter is getting in Cuba? Do you think his five-day visit is going to help far relations between the island nation and the United States? Next week, President Bush plans a tough speech outlining U.S. policy toward Cuba, so I guess we'll see.

In just a few minutes, we'll visit Cuba via satellite and talk to correspondent John Zarrella. In the meantime, I want to get you involved, of course. The phone number: 1-800-310-4CNN. And, of course, you can e-mail me at talkback@cnn.com. Now here's what's in store today.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

(voice-over): It's all warm and friendly between Cuban President Fidel Castro and Jimmy Carter. But, is Cuba developing biological weapons on the sly? And will Carter learn the truth?

Also, fountain of youth seekers party on, celebrating the approval of a new wrinkle eraser.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I honestly feel that these Botox parties are sort of the Tupperware party of the new millennium, but with a cautionary aspect.

NEVILLE: But can the pursuit of too much beauty be dangerous?

And you can talk to actress Fran Drescher. She's here with a warning about uterine cancer.

FRAN DRESCHER, ACTRESS: It wasn't handled by the medical community. I lived to talk about it.

NEVILLE: Fran saw nine doctors before one of them figured out her problem. Don't let that happen to you.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

OK that's the plan. Now let's start in Havana, Cuba, where CNN Correspsondent John Zarrella is keeping up with former President Jimmy Carter's private mission on the island.

John, before you get started with you report, I want to ask you, though, have you been able to gauge the people's reaction to Carter's visit? I mean are they more hopeful, or do they think this is mainly about PR?

JOHN ZARRELLA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Arthel, you know it's right, keeping up with President Carter, he's been awfully busy. It's tough keeping up with him, that's for sure, in the day that he's been here on the island.

As far as the Cuban people, the folks on the street that we have talked to right along, they know Jimmy Carter, they knew he was coming, they know he's here for the most part. He's already been on Cuban TV. The remarks at the airport yesterday when he arrived were carried live on Cuban Television. So many folks on the island of 11 million plus people did see and did here what Jimmy Carter had to say.

And a lot of them have told us, you know the one thing that they want above all else is for the United States to lift the trade embargo against Cuba. They believe that that will better their living standard, their living conditions, and that's what they want to see. And for the past 40 plus years of the trade embargo, President Castro has been very effective in pounding home that the U.S. trade embargo is responsible for all the ills the island faces in its economy.

So that's one reason why these people are so focused on that particular issue -- Arthel.

NEVILLE: So tell us about Mr. Carter's busy agenda.

ZARRELLA: Well his busy agenda, of course, started yesterday with the arrival at the airport. And, of course, interestingly enough, they played both the Cuban National Anthem and the United States' National Anthem, with President Carter, his wife and Fidel Castro standing for that. And that certainly gives you kind of goose bumps when you see that. The last time I saw that was when I was down here for the Baltimore Orioles, when they played baseball against the Cuban national team.

After that was over, he went to meetings first with Felipe Perez- Roque (ph), who is the foreign minister here. Then he went for a meeting with Vicky Huddleston (ph), who is the highest-ranking U.S. diplomat here on the island, the head of the (UNINTELLIGIBLE). From there, a state dinner, which was not open to the press last night, with President Castro.

Today, he started his day at the genetic engineering and biotechnical center, which has become the center of...

NEVILLE: Absolutely.

ZARRELLA: ... a tremendous amount of controversy, the fray between Washington and Havana. And later today he goes on to a couple of schools. One a medical school and one a social worker school. So he has had a tremendously busy day here so far. NEVILLE: And the reason why that center is causing such controversy, because there is talk, and the White House believes that perhaps Fidel Castro and crew are developing nuclear weapons or biological weapons that could be used against us or sold to other countries that hate the United States.

ZARRELLA: And that has caused a tremendous stir. Since that report came out about a week ago, the Castro administration down here, the Castro government, has vigorously denied it. In fact, a group of scientists who work at these centers came out publicly and said that these were absolute lies. That they are in the business of saving lives, not developing weapons. President Castro, yesterday in the opening remarks at the airport, told Jimmy Carter he's welcome to go and see anything he wants to, take anybody he wants to, to go see these things.

It's interesting when...

NEVILLE: And that's a nice idea. But if they are indeed developing this, it's going to be in a covert operation. It's certainly not going to be at your typical science center, so of course you can look inside these centers. This is not where it's going to happen anyway.

ZARRELLA: Well, certainly. But what Jimmy Carter did say following his visit there today was that he asked for the State Department to brief him before he came here and to produce any evidence that there was any biological weapons development going on at the centers. And he said today that intelligence sources in the United States could not produce for him any evidence.

NEVILLE: OK, John. Now you know here on TALKBACK LIVE it's the only show where the people get to ask you, a correspondent, a direct question. So I have Allen (ph) standing by with me from Florida -- go ahead, Allen (ph).

ZARRELLA: Hi, Allen (ph).

ALLEN: Hi, how are you doing? My point is this: I trust Castro as much as I trust Hussein or anybody else. And when he says that Carter can speak to anyone, I think to myself, yeah, as long as it's pre-approved. He can go anywhere as long as it's pre-approved.

And I don't think for one second that Carter is going to get the full flavor of what's going on in Cuba.

ZARRELLA: What I can tell you is that I don't know the backdoor dealings, and certainly none of us do, of how this trip was put together. But what we can tell you is that, for example, tomorrow night, President -- former President Carter is going to be delivering a speech live on Cuban television from the university here in Havana. And our understanding is that an advanced copy of that speech has not been given to the Cuban government.

Now, you're absolutely right. President Carter can be told, go look at anything, anything you want. But what is he likely to see or find out for himself? Probably nothing.

But the fact of the matter is that as far as the Cuban government is concerned, it is being more open to President Carter than it perhaps has been in the past. Now remember when the pope was here a few years ago many of the same things were said, the gestures were made. What actually comes out of all of what happens this week? It's probably going to be for the history books to decide. But certainly your point is well taken.

NEVILLE: John Zarrella, thank you very much for joining us here on TALKBACK LIVE today.

Now let's focus on the politics of Carter's visit to Cuba. Certainly, he's visiting a different Cuba than the one President John Kennedy dealt with in the early 60s. Still, the White House isn't what you'd call enthusiastic about Carter's visit.

Over the weekend, the Bush administration emphasized that Cuba is developing biological weapons for sale to U.S. enemies. And, today, White House Spokesman Ari Fleischer said Cuban leader Fidel Castro should give his own people the same freedom to travel and meet with dissidents, as he has extended to Carter.

Here to talk about U.S. relations with Cuba are California Congresswoman Maxine Waters, and Steve Johnson, a Policy Analyst for Latin America at the Heritage Foundation -- welcome to both of you.

REP. MAXINE WATERS (D), CALIFORNIA: Thank you.

STEVE JOHNSON, HERITAGE FOUNDATION: Good to be here.

NEVILLE: Great.

Congresswoman -- you know what, may I call you Ms. Waters?

WATERS: Yes you may.

NEVILLE: Because congresswoman is a mouthful for me.

WATERS: That's all right.

NEVILLE: OK, thank you.

Ms. Waters, I'll begin with you. What is, in your opinion, Castro's motive?

WATERS: Well, first of all, I'd like to commend President Carter for taking this visit. This is going to be very, very important. I think that Castro is going to be very open with him.

I have been to Cuba two times. I have visited the medical schools. I think that this information that the White House came up with is just not true. I'm not surprised that they were not able to give President Carter any facts, because I think they tried to cloud the visit of President Carter, because this White House is under the gun from anti Fidel Castro Cubans who are still and will always be angry with him. And I think it's time for us to lift that embargo, to open up trade, to allow our agriculture products to go down there. They're just 90 miles off our shore.

And let me tell you, if we can be friends with China and Russia and the Saudi Arabians and Pakistan and everybody else, why not Cuba?

(APPLAUSE)

NEVILLE: Well you are getting overwhelming applause here. And, Robin (ph), you were shaking your head vigorously when Ms. Waters was speaking. Why is that?

ROBIN (ph): Well, because I agree with her completely. I mean according to the "Wall Street Journal" just today, there's this huge military buildup in America, which is great for our economy and all that. But Bush needs to keep us all excited about the fact that there are enemies beyond our borders. And these are people who are 90 miles away from us.

I agree with everyone here who said that there's reason for there to be hands across the sea, diplomacy with so many other people with whom we have differing views. But why not a neighbor? I've been there myself. It is, as my husband said, I mean it's really very difficult for the people. There isn't any proof.

I think that it's possible that Carter is going there because -- and someone else said that he probably had the sanction of the government. You know, it makes Bush look good that America is doing something, you know, humanitarianly.

NEVILLE: Thank you.

Steve Johnson, I know you're there, but I do have a follow-up for Ms. Waters. And that is, let's say the trade embargo is lifted. Do you really think that Fidel Castro would be for his people, Ms. Waters?

WATERS: Well absolutely. What we have to understand about Cuba is that there is a lot of business going on. People keep talking about this being a society where people cannot have businesses, they cannot earn money, and that's absolutely not true.

I'm pleased that CNN began to show some of that, where they showed the restaurants that are opening up; that old historic district with all of the art, and the free enterprise that is taking place in Cuba. Cuba wants to join with the West, and I think we should work with them to help bring them to a more democratic society, instead of just simply strangling them.

We talk about how badly, how poorly the people are doing. But if we would open up and get rid of this embargo, this blockade, we could help the people improve their lives there. And that's all that they want at this time.

(APPLAUSE)

NEVILLE: Steve Johnson, how do you see this?

JOHNSON: Well I think it's time to lift the blockade -- for Mr. Castro to lift the blockade on his own people. After all, what we're doing here is an exercise in having relations with a 74-year-old man, as opposed to 11 million Cubans. It's the Cubans that we really should be focusing on.

Like Mexico and Spain have done recently, we should have relations with the republic of Cuba, which means all of the island, all of the people, not just the leader of the resolution. There's a big difference between Castro and China. There's a misconception in this country that both countries are the same and led by similar kinds of dictators.

Well the fact of the matter is, is that China has second- generation leaders who are not as ego involved in running their country as Castro is in Cuba. In China, you have experimentation with multiparty elections at the local and district levels. And in Cuba, you don't.

NEVILLE: OK, hang on for me. Steve, hang on for me, because I've got to take a break right now. Stay right there everybody at home.

And in just a little while, we are going to have a Botox party, believe it or not, without the drinks, of course. If you have an ounce of vanity -- and I know you do -- you won't want to miss this one. Back in a moment.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

NEVILLE: Welcome back, everybody.

We're talking to Congresswoman Maxine Waters and Steve Johnson about U.S. policy toward Cuba.

And, Steve, I'll begin with you this segment. Do you think there could be any negative or adverse repercussions from Mr. Carter's visit to Cuba?

JOHNSON: I don't think so. I don't think it's going to change an awful lot. What will probably happen, hopefully there'll be greater scrutiny of human rights in Cuba. And I think to some degree, President Castro has arranged this as sort of a dog and pony show to try and encourage perhaps a softening in the U.S. position, not necessarily on the embargo, but the ability to obtain credits -- U.S. taxpayer-backed credits so that Cuba could buy such goods as grains and soft goods and medicines.

The interesting point about the biotechnology lab, as sophisticated as it is and useful for both purposes in terms of developing live cultures as well as disabled or dead cultures that can be used for vaccines, is that in Cuba the drugstores for ordinary Cubans can't even provide the reliable supply of aspirin. So you kind of have to wonder how and what purpose this medical technology is being used for. But I think the big thing is that President Carter's emphasis on human rights and democracy, the fact that he has a reputation for advancing the cause of democracy around the world, will be helpful in showing the plight of ordinary Cubans who don't have recourse to free speech elections or the ability to associate with each other in public. And hopefully...

NEVILLE: Congresswoman Waters, I'd like to get you in on this. Do you ever foresee Cuba as a democracy?

WATERS: Oh, absolutely. First of all, let me say that I have a high degree of respect for what Fidel Castro has done with healthcare. Everybody in Cuba is guaranteed comprehensive healthcare. They have doctors in every community. It's free, and their people are in good health.

As a matter of fact, the infant mortality rate in some areas in Cuba is better than many areas in the United States. And Fidel Castro knew that unless he trained doctors and developed medicine his people would die because of this embargo and being cut off from access to medicines -- yes?

NEVILLE: Ms. Waters, I haven't been to Cuba as you have been many times, as you said, but it's my impression that there are many Cubans living in squalor and not having any access to medicine and things that you're talking about.

WATERS: That's not true. What you have is poor people in Cuba. Everybody has access to healthcare. As a matter of fact, it's better than some places in Mississippi and some places in this country.

As I said, in many of the rural areas where doctors are assigned the infant mortality rate is better than infant mortality rate in many parts of the United States. That's one thing they have done. They take care of their people health-wise and they educate all of the children. They've done fantastically well.

NEVILLE: OK. I'm going to let John (ph) from Alabama jump in here.

WATERS: Yes.

JOHN (ph): I firmly believe that the president of the United States is the only person that should have any influence with other governments and should be the one that makes foreign policy decisions. Ex presidents had their time; they had their moment. Jimmy Carter had four years, Bill Clinton had eight years, and the relationship remains the same.

(APPLAUSE)

NEVILLE: OK, thank you.

Maddox (ph), stand up for me and give me your comment.

MADDOX (ph): I agree with the congresswoman. It's time to lift the embargo. It seem kind of ironic to me that America is the most powerful nation in the world, and yet she's afraid of a nation 90 miles to the south, a small island nation. What is she afraid of?

If she can deal with China for the last 30 years, and China has been building nuclear weapons and selling weapons all over the world, why can't she deal with Cuba? It's time to lift the embargo. Let's move into the 21st century.

NEVILLE: Thank you very much.

And I think you had something to say. Betty Lou (ph), stand up for me.

BETTY LOU (ph): Hi. As Paul McCartney said, freedom is a right. And Cuba has that same right. It's time to do some healing for the world. That would help to lift the embargo.

NEVILLE: OK.

JOHNSON: Arthel...

NEVILLE: Go ahead, Steve.

JOHNSON: I just wanted to make a point. Whether you lifted the embargo or not, it probably wouldn't make any difference. The only thing that's going to make a big difference in the lives of ordinary Cubans is whether or not there is economic reforms that allow Cubans to have labor rights, to allow them to have collective bargaining, to keep the salaries that they're paid in joint ventures and to allow them to have employees like other businesses.

Right now, all they've got in terms of being able to work on their own is to be a cuenta propiesta (ph). There is only about 150,000 of them on the island, and they -- while they can keep part of the salaries that they make, they're not allowed to have employees, they're not allowed to grow their businesses, they're not allowed to have them as real private enterprise. And really what has to happen is a liberalization of policies that allows Cubans to take advantage of their own talents.

NEVILLE: OK. Steve Johnson, thank you very much. Maxine Waters, thank you very much as well.

OK. Now remember that Botox bash I told you about earlier, because I know you all are all so vain primping up even at home. I can't see you. Well get ready, it's all happening next. Don't go anywhere.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

NEVILLE: OK. Welcome back, everybody. I'm Arthel Neville.

If you haven't seen them yet, you will. The ads are going to be everywhere urging you to get rid of your wrinkles by letting a doctor inject with them poison. Take a look at this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Wow. Wow. It's not magic, it's Botox cosmetic. Wow. Worried about losing your "wow"? Ask your dermatologist or plastic surgeon about Botox cosmetic. Or call for the name of a doctor in your area. It's not magic, it's Botox cosmetic.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

NEVILLE: OK, I need to know, would that make anybody here get this Botox injection? What do you say, Roxanne (ph)?

ROXANNE (ph): I'm just saying that I would wait until it was approved a little bit more and the prices came down. Because it's always better when the prices come down.

NEVILLE: Yeah, but you know this is a little sexy commercial there.

Wait, Milly (ph), what are you saying? Stand up for me -- what are you saying?

MILLY (ph): I disagree wholeheartedly. She's waiting for -- like (UNINTELLIGIBLE), it was many years before the side effects of that were determined. And "safe and effective" were some of the very words that were used with (UNINTELLIGIBLE). I take a little bit of (UNINTELLIGIBLE).

NEVILLE: OK -- OK. It's a big question. Is Botox the fountain of youth? Is it something of a rage -- or it is something of a rage right now. People attend Botox parties, where the procedure is explained and, in some cases, even done right there on the spot.

So we're having a little party of our own, and we invited Dr. David Feldman. He is Director of Plastic Surgery with -- how do you say your clinic?

DR. DAVID FELDMAN: Oh, (UNINTELLIGIBLE) -- Medical Center.

NEVILLE: That's right, and you're here with us. He is joined with Manon Slome, the Curator of the Jewish Community Center's dangerous beauty exhibit opening later this month in Manhattan. And I want to welcome both of you.

MANON SLOME, ART CURATOR: Thank you.

FELDMAN: Thanks for having us.

NEVILLE: Now Ms. Slome, with a name like Arthel, I don't like people to mispronounce my name, so tell me how to pronounce your first name.

SLOME: It's Manon Slome.

NEVILLE: OK -- you got it.

Dr. Feldman, I'm going to start with you. Why would anybody want to put botulism in their face?

FELDMAN: Well, Arthel, it's just one of the many things that we as plastic surgeons can use to help people feel and look better.

NEVILLE: It's botulism.

FELDMAN: Yes it is. But in the forms that we use it in, it's a very small amount. And if used appropriately, can do things that patients can be happy with.

NEVILLE: So tell me how this works. You take a little needle, you put a couple of CCs (ph) in, and the wrinkles are gone forever?

FELDMAN: No, unfortunately not. The effect of Botox is really only for somewhere between three and five months, depending on the patient and where you inject it.

NEVILLE: So this means if I started this stuff, I have to have a lifetime standing appointment with you for every three months? Or do the wrinkles eventually just go away?

FELDMAN: Well, probably not, although I don't think we have enough experience to know what happens over a long, long period of time. There are some studies that suggest there may be long-term effect but we don't know that for sure.

NEVILLE: Miss Slome, I don't think you are so keen on this idea?

SLOME: For me it's not a question of Botox or not Botox. My concern is that people understand the forces that are acting on them in their decision to go ahead with it or not. We live in a society where we are inundated by images of what society considers beautiful: younger and younger, thinner and thinner and kind of perfection that is only possible with digital manipulation, air brushing.

My contention is that people look at these images then compare themselves to them and feel that everything about them is wrong. And the contention of my exhibition is that we hurt ourselves both emotionally and physically in trying to emulate these ideals of perfection.

NEVILLE: Dr. Feldman, that certainly would take food off your table if people weren't worrying about being vain.

FELDMAN: Not all that plastic surgeons do is cosmetic surgery. Certainly from the cosmetic surgery point of view there would be concern with that. But a lot of cosmetic surgery is really based on trying to improve the way patients feel about themselves. And whether we choose to face it or not, our society has created certain norms that some people choose to follow. And I think if a patient is interested in helping themselves to feel better, if they are under the guidance of a professional and it's done in the right setting, I think these things can be helpful.

NEVILLE: But we are talking about people walking around with faceless expressions because this Botox is in there and they can't even raise their eye-brows any more.

FELDMAN: There is certainly a limit to how much Botox you want to give somebody. No question about that.

NEVILLE: Look -- at zoom into me. This it. Hi I'm so excited to see you. I mean look at this. This is the way I look on Botox, doctor. Look at my face. I can't even express myself.

FELDMAN: I certainly wouldn't favor using botox to create somebody who looks like that.

NEVILLE: What does that mean?

FELDMAN: Without any facial expression.

NEVILLE: I thought were you trying to crack on me, Doctor.

FELDMAN: I wouldn't do that.

NEVILLE: There's so much interest in the procedure and what it says about vanity, of course, and our society. We are going to talk about it more after this break and we'll check out the news. Then a little later actress Fran Drescher will join me right here in Atlanta to talk about the new book and two year battle with the medical community. Stay right there.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

NEVILLE: Welcome back, everybody. We are talking with Dr. David Feldman and Ms. Some about Botox for beauty. And we were talking about it during the commercial here and I have some comments. I think Cindy wanted to say something. Stand up for me.

CINDY: I just think it's bad for people to feel that they have to buy their self esteem. You know, if they are not feeling comfortable with themselves, then they have to go -- it's kind of like the rich are beautiful but the poor aren't as beautiful.

NEVILLE: Yes, because you have to be rich to get this thing because you are talking about $400 a shot, right doctor? Four hundred dollars, right.

FELDMAN: Depending on where you are and how much, it can certainly be that high, yes.

NEVILLE: We have a standing-room only crowd here today, which I love by the way. I'm coming out here to talk to you. What's your name.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Carolyn.

NEVILLE: What do you think about all of this?

CAROLYN: I think it's great. If you can afford it and it makes you feel better about yourself, because I'm 58 years old and I'm getting them around my lips and just around the eyes. NEVILLE: You would do it. And you I understand are going to do it next week.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Right. I'm Kathy Stevens and I am going to have it done next week. I always said when I was younger since I lived in the sun all my life, I would have plastic surgery. After I say the plastic surgery where they cut on you and you have the bruises and the staples I rethought that. But the minute I heard about Botox I thought, there I am.

NEVILLE: We are not sure about the long-term effects on this because we haven't been doing this procedure long enough.

FELDMAN: Well, we are not sure about whether the effect is in any way permanent. As far as we can tell now it isn't. After three to six months patients will lose the effect.

NEVILLE: And they have to come back to you to get it redone, right.?

FELDMAN: They have to come back to have it done again if they want to maintain that effect. But some patients don't like it after three months and that's OK, too.

NEVILLE: Fernando? I thought were you going to say something to me.

Yes. We were talking about this in the audience here and I'm not sure that I would get it. In fact I know I wouldn't get it. What about you, Miss Charlotte?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The thing is this, I can't understand why this whole thing is on about Botox. You have had collagen and the demerolagen (ph) and you have had all these other things on the market and they have proved to be safer because Botox really hasn't proven itself as you have you are discussing here.

So I think that if people have enjoyed those treatments and it makes them feel younger and they can afford it, why not? That's my feeling. I would go for it.

NEVILLE: Thank you, Miss Charlotte. Is the question there then why would you need it? I don't know. What do you say, doctor?

FELDMAN: Botox is a different kind of treatment than the ones that your listener has mentioned. Botox only works for wrinkles caused by muscle action. There are other wrinkles in the face that Botox won't have any effect on. Those might be helped by some of the other things we have available to say; collagen or using ones own fat to refill a line but it depends on the kind of problem you have and all the more reason why you really need to see a professional about this. For us as plastic surgeons it is just one thing in many that we can use to help patients.

NEVILLE: Would you get it done, doctor? FELDMAN: Would I get it done? I have a birthmark on my face and I know I use lasers to remove birth marks. And I like the way my birthmark looks, so I never had it done.

NEVILLE: Would you get Botox injections, doctor?

FELDMAN: Would I get them? I don't think so. But that doesn't mean -- I have tried it on my wife and she didn't like it.

NEVILLE: She didn't like it.

FELDMAN: Nope, didn't like the inability to move her eye brows, so she decided not to have it. It isn't for everybody.

NEVILLE: So when she came home you couldn't tell if she was happy to see you. Erica, what do you have to say.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Well, I was just wondering. We are talking about every 3 or 4 months you have to go back and get another treatment. How about the poison? The wrinkles -- the wrinkles come back after a few months. Does the poison remain? What are we thinking about in terms of the buildup? So many people have cancer from injecting all these foreign substances and being exposed to all these foreign substances into their body over their life time.

Since we know nothing about this product really over an extended basis, how do we know that eventually this isn't going to cause cancer or some other debilitating source?

NEVILLE: Thank you very much, Erica.

Miss Slome, I wanto to bring you back into this conversation now. I haven't heard from you in a while. Your main concern with this over all is a message that perhaps society its just too consumed with vanity. People want to be skinny. People want to be, have a smooth face. No wrinkles. Isn't that your concern here?

SLOME: Yes absolutely. And you know what is a little bit discouraging about seeing that ad when this segment opened, is how young those models that were being used in the advertisement were. This is something -- our society is terrified of age. They don't regard the wrinkle as a sign of experience or greater maturity in the world. It is just something massively to be avoided and in our society we edit out older women. They are completely -- if they are on the front cover of a "TIME" magazine, they are air brushed out.

But it's getting younger and younger. As models are getting younger and the threshold is going down and down again and when you have models that are 15 and young children are seeing that and wanting to emulate and older people see the models and start feeling they are redundant at 40, the tendency is increasingly dangerous.

NEVILLE: You are right. That's not a good signal, I think. Dr. Feldman, thank you very much.

FELDMAN: Thank you. NEVILLE: Miss Slome, thank you as well for joining us here at TALKBACK LIVE.

Up next, get ready. Actress Fran Drescher will tell you how it took two years and nine doctors to get her uterine cancer diagnosed. She has some advice so that same thing doesn't happen to any of us. Stay right there.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

NEVILLE: Welcome back everybody. Most of you probably know actress Fran Drescher from her television role on "The Nanny." That would be your cue to go the laugh you do.

FRAN DRESCHER, ACTRESS: Ha! ha!

NEVILLE: However she has appeared in a string of movies and she's with us today to promote her new book and give some advice and engage in a little girl talk. Fran Drescher is here. Her new book is titled "Cancer Schmancer," and in it she sums up her life something like this. She says "I was a chubby kid from Queens. Moved to California. Married my high school sweetheart. Got raped. Became a famous TV star. Divorced my sweet heart. Lost my TV show and got cancer." That's a lot for a tiny lady like yourself.

DRESCHER: I'll tell you, big things come in small packages, I guess.

NEVILLE: Fran, you have such a great outlook and you have been cancer free now for two years, so I ask you if you can tell me how you have lived your life in those past two years.

DRESCHER: You know, I'm not going to kid you. I have had my good days and my bad days but I think side by side with grief lies joy and although I'm not glad that I got the cancer and I wouldn't wish it on anyone, I feel like I'm a better person for it.

And I developed deeper and greater bonds with my loved ones and my friends and I feel like I have a purpose in life that I didn't have before because I really feel like I have an important message to give people. And, you know, the book itself is actually written in a sort of funny way even though it's very informative and empowering.

A lot of humorous things happen and it's just important that we stop and take the time to notice it.

NEVILLE: I can't imagine anything humorous happening when you are on this road, is a nightmare, and they took so long, nine doctors, two years to finally discover what was wrong with you. What could possibly be funny about that?

DRESCHER: You know, I had in the hospital these two nurses that hated each other. One was a day nurse and one was a night nurse and every time they changed shift they used to fight across me. It's like insane. Heckle and Jekyl we used to call them. And my cousin came to visit me at my house when I was recovering. She started to choke on a piece of chicken and I jumped up to do the Heimlich maneuver, here I'm so sick and got the stitches and my dad who rarely comes up for air when this food placed in front of him immediately starts -- what's going on? And my mom is screaming, don't rip your stitches. I'm doing the Heimlich and my cousin Susan is still holding a glass of wine and is spilling across the room.

And then all of a sudden, you know, with the last thrust like a piece of regurgetated poultry lands on the floor. We all go over to inspect it and my mom, while she's picking it up with a napkin says, it's not even that big.

NEVILLE: You mention these stitches because you had a radical hysterectomy.

DRESCHER: Yes. I had a radical hysterectomy. Thank god, you are so busy talking about Botox, thank god I thought to tell the surgeon that I wanted the plastic surgeon to sew zoe me up because it is almost two years and I have absolutely no scar at all. I think the surgeon does what she does good, and then let a cosmetic surgeon do the outside stuff. So then, you know, you don't have a scar.

NEVILLE: When you had this radical hysterectomy, did you have any options? Is that how they were able to get rid of the cancer? Help me understand this.

DRESCHER: Yes, I think that's usually the recommended surgery when you have endomitrio (ph) cancer, they just sort of hollow you out like a Barbie Doll and hope you are cured. I was lucky because I was still at stage one, but it took me two years and eight doctors to get diagnosed with something that is very easily diagnosed and very easy to cure if it gets diagnosed early enough.

Unfortunately the early warning -- early symptoms of particularly gynechological (ph) cancer, but many cancers, this is not just a message for women, it's men alike, can be so easily confused for, you know, much more benign ailments and conditions and the doctors can waste your time treating you for something you don't have while there's a cancer growing within you and you are losing precious time.

NEVILLE: How do we as a patient -- hopefully it doesn't happen to anybody -- but if in case it does, what do you say to your doctor? You are telling doctor, something is going wrong. I'm feeling different. He says you are pre-menopausal. How do you convince them to do a further test on you?

DRESCHER: Well, you know, first of all, you go armed with information, which I really didn't have at the time. If I knew that a D and C would tell me whether or not I had endomitrial cancer and that the cancer's early warning signs were exactly the symptoms I had, I totally, when the first doctor said to me, oh, you are too young for a D and C, and instead of asking why, what would that proof and disprove? I was like so thrilled that I was too young for anything. So, you know.

NEVILLE: Too young for Botox by the way, looking at you close- up.

DRESCHER: Thank you.

NEVILLE: Do you have any advice, though, to other people? Here you have this great disposition and you went through such -- it had to be a nightmare at times.

DRESCHER: Believe me. The nights are the worst because then you don't have the day to distract you. And you start thinking about things and connecting the dots and it gets very scary, and I, well my dear friend Elaine gave me a very profound piece of advice when she said, don't mix imagination with fear. It's a deadly cocktail.

So I to keep reminding myself of that. And then, you know, if you don't have a mate that you sleep with, get a pet. Get a cat. Dog. Anything that is warm and furry that can sleep with you so when you get to that place where you are like, really in a very bleak zone, and you are like, really being negative and you shouldn't, you should try not to be there, at least you have something to grab on to. Something that is alive and here and grounds you, pulls you back into reality a little bit.

NEVILLE: Right. We have to take a break right now but we'll be back with Fran after this break. Don't go anywhere.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

NEVILLE: Welcome back everybody. We are talking with actress and author Fran Drescher. Fran, what is the likelihood or chances of this cancer coming back?

DRESCHER: Well, you know, if it were up to me? You know, I'm really feeling very bull-ish that I have been cured for a number of reasons. But it's been almost two years and every time you go for your checkup and you get a good report, you keep upping your percentages, stack in your favor of none recurrence. Because the further you go from the initial thing, the better your odds are it's not going to come back.

NEVILLE: Do you have to take medication?

DRESCHER: No I don't take anything. I just have to go for my -- I go every three months then when I hit the two year mark then I go every six months, but I don't even need -- I don't mind going every three months. I like, worry well maybe, what's the rush to push me into 6 months? Why can't we keep always checking it?

NEVILLE: I'm running out of time here, but I have to get a little girl talk in because you have a new boyfriend, right?

DRESCHER: I do indeed. I do. Well, this dude helped me through this whole nightmare and like, you know, slept on a cot at the hospital and really put his life on a back burner for me and, you know, my husband and I separated and then divorced, I thought oh, but what if I get sick. What if something happens.

NEVILLE: That's the worst fear.

DRESCHER: Will I have anyone. Will I be alone and I wasn't alone. I fell in love and he was there for me and, you know, life goes on.

NEVILLE: And he's a lot younger. You go girl. I'm out of time. Thank you so much for being here fran. Thank you very much.

DRESCHER: My pleasure. Thank you.

NEVILLE: Thanks to all of you for watching.

DRESCHER: Get checked.

NEVILLE: I'm Arthel Neville. I'll see you again tomorrow at 3 Eastern with more TALKBACK LIVE. Judy Woodruff is next with a look on what's ahead on INSIDE POLITICS.

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