A Singapore cancer patient was held for four hours by immigration officials in the United States when they could not detect his fingerprints — which had apparently disappeared because of a drug he was taking.
The incident, highlighted in the Annals of Oncology, was reported by the patient’s doctor, Tan Eng Huat, who advised cancer patients taking this drug to carry a doctor’s letter when traveling to the United States.
The drug, capecitabine, is commonly used to treat cancers in the head and neck, breast, stomach and colorectum.
One side-effect is chronic inflammation of the palms or soles of the feet and the skin can peel, bleed and develop ulcers or blisters — or what is known as hand-foot syndrome.
“This can give rise to eradication of fingerprints with time,” explained Tan.
“He was detained at the airport customs for four hours because the immigration officers could not detect his fingerprints. He was allowed to enter after the custom officers were satisfied that he was not a security threat.”
We may have changed out the White House and a small piece of Congress for more up-to-date models – but, most of Homeland Insecurity hasn’t changed a jot.
The current policy is just fine the way it is.
The patient was advised to take a letter when traveling to the US and did not.
#1 – The suggestion about carrying a letter advising of the chemo and possible side effects – resulted from Mr. Tan’s encounter with TSA dolts.
The rest of us should just carry a letter for ALL TSA employees – saying “you’re a fracking idiot!”
#2 Ahh. As long as we all agree that everyone needs to have fingerprints and at least one belly button when entering the US.
Foreigner with no detectable fingerprints gets detained, then released and allowed to enter after they confirm the explanation for this highly suspicious oddity.
Yeah, thanks for adding your usual political hack commentary. TSA really are a bunch of dumbfucks. /rollseyes
Well this item should never have been released. Now the terrorists know that if they are on cancer treatments they can get by our homeland security.
We are practically inviting them in!!!
In the UK they now have lamppost mounted RF ID fingerprint readers, I heard.
#3 and #5 – This isn’t TSA, this is ICE.
Fingerprints are a standard part of the biometrics involved in obtaining a visa, and they have been since 2002.
I see nothing wrong with how this was handled. ICE found an aberration in the process, and they resolved it with success.
Entering a country, any country, isn’t a right. It is a privilege.
I gotta go with that Mac Guy. A letter signed by the Singapore Embassy attesting that he is undergoing the treatments would have made the inspection much smoother.
What is ICE’s procedure for travelers who have no hands? Why can’t they treat this guy the same way?
#10, you need to have an RFDI chip installed in your hook.
It’s likely much easier to explain not having a hand than it is to explain to an immigration official’s satisfaction why you don’t have fingerprints.
FYI – This incident involved ICE, not TSA.
Thanks,
Bob
Paranoia once built a wall in Germany.
Sargasso, you have it backwards. The wall in Germany was to keep their people from leaving. Sure as hell no one was trying to sneak in!
# 4 Dallas said, “As long as we all agree that everyone needs to have fingerprints and at least one belly button when entering the US.” Oh, I don’t know about that. There’s at least one supermodel who is accused of having no belly button. She can come visit me ANY time. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/magazine/7738144.stm
By the way, there are lots of people without navels. Usually surgical removals for one reason or another. I know one plastic surgeon who claims the usual practice of moving the navel during tummy tucks, frequently has requests to just get rid of it.
Our country.. our rules..
Presumably this could also effect US citizens who pick pineapples for a living. Because the acid in the fruit’s skin also has been known to dissolve the fingerprints of the pickers, if they don’t wear gloves. And who’s going to wear those in the tropics? These pickers just better not make enough money to travel to the states. Or they’ll be stopped for not having clear prints. As if real terrorists would call attention to themselves by burning off theirs. Far easier to fake ID papers, with their prints intact. The TSA and HLS is just being paranoid about people they can’t trace. Not whether those they can, have real identities.