Subscribe by EmailScience is Sexy: “The Cure for Cancer”
April 24, 2009 by Jimmy Rogers | 65 comments
By Jimmy Rogers
Contributing Writer, [GAS]
Yes, we at Geeks are Sexy have discovered the cure for cancer! And for this, we ask for nothing more in return than your eternal gratitude.
Ok, ok, so there are two small problems in the first sentence of this post. First of all, we’re a blog, not a well funded group of scientists (well actually I’m a scientist, but that’s another matter). Second, and more importantly, the hypothetical “cure for cancer” that is often tossed about in conversation is a misleading concept. Let’s explore this second point a little further.
The other day I read a great webcomic about the day to day life of a cancer researcher and I realized that a huge number of people still have no idea what cancer is or how we might combat it. To the general public, cancer is a dark cloud that affects the old and those exposed to cancer-causing chemicals. It is seen as a disease that afflicts humans without warning or consideration for the human condition.
This view, while not necessarily wrong, has lead to the concept of a single “cure for cancer,” much like that found in I Am Legend (it causes the zombies, if you’ve forgotten). Unlike other afflictions, cancer is not the result of a foreign invader or an injury. Instead, it is the failure of the body’s natural growth controls.
Most body cells will grow and replicate, but only up to a certain point. With each replication (in a process called mitosis, depicted on the right), their genomes grow shorter until they reach a point where replication can no longer occur. There are instances where the DNA can be extended repeatedly and the cell can essentially be “immortalized.” Unfortunately, immortality in the world of cell biology is known as cancer.
Beyond just the “first steps” of cancer, the actual disease experienced by millions every year surfaces after a cancerous cell has multiplied and begun to essentially form a new organ, a tumor. The tumor will redirect blood and nutrients toward itself and eventually colonize new areas of the body (a stage called metastasis).
So what can we do to “cure” cancer? Well essentially cancer forming cells occur naturally in the body of every human over the course of his or her lifetime. Normally these cells either recognize the error and “commit suicide” (apoptosis) or the immune system notices them and neutralizes them. It is only in the rare instance of a mutation that allows a cell to replicate endlessly AND evade the immune system that cancer can develop. Those seeking to treat the disease can either target cells that are rapidly dividing (this is the strategy behind chemotherapy) or remove tumors once they become large enough to target surgically.
Something that the aforementioned webcomic discusses is the plight of the molecular biologists researching cancer. There is not just one type of cancer, but instead there are many (The National Cancer Institute’s general list of cancers will give you some idea, but the number is in the hundreds). Every normal body cell can become cancerous and each of those cells has a different interaction with the body. Some cancers have already been cured while others remain a challenge to obtain funding for. Personally, as a young biologist, I’ve thought about taking my new career toward cancer research, and believe me, it’s fairly daunting. Cancer’s very definition as a complex regulatory disease means there will be no simple solutions and few big breakthroughs. Progress has been made, but only through many years of painstaking experimentation, both in and out of the lab.
I hope those of you not in the biological sciences have gotten a little better understanding of cancer than you had when you began reading this article. If we get good feedback we hope to make “Science is Sexy” a regular feature on GaS that will inform, entertain, and even occasionally editorialize in regards to a broad array of science topics. I am a PhD student in Microbiology (starting next semester), so topics in the life sciences will probably be more common, but hopefully we can branch out into other fields as well. Please, please, please leave your thoughts about this article and ideas for future articles in the comments section below!
[Header picture source: Flickr | Mitosis image is public domain, found on the Mitosis Wikipedia article | The Elements of Cancer image is an exerpt from PhD's Comic about Cancer]
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Great article, thanks. ‘Debunking myths’ is always a goos thing to do.
Hello, I just finished reading your article on the cure for cancer.. and thought I might drop a few of my own lines.
My dad was diagnosed with Chronic Lymphatic Cancer, around 5 years ago. It is currently a progressive, non-curable form of cancer that infects the lymph-node system.
From what I know about this cancer, it is well-spread through most of his body, the doctors had given my dad an expiration date of around 7-14 years after his diagnosis.
My dad has told me he’s been smoking for 35 years, heavily – often times (1, 2) packs of cigarettes a day.
This cancer, being progressive – has spread through many parts of his body and the doctor’s have given it a numbered state of 3 out of 5, numerologically ‘ 5 being the worst.
Over the course of the last 5 years I have not noticed a distinct change / affection in the man’s habits (He still smokes?Wtf) and he enjoys riding his Harley Davidson motorcycle.
It is interesting to note that the doctor’s status updates on his current condition have not worsened. From what I know of my father, I still believe he has the power to overcome and endure through this cancerous lifetime.
Very interesting stuff! As a self-professed geek with zero science background but a healthy amount of curiosity, I’m definitely in favor of more posts like this!
I’m always a fan of including more science on popular blogs. Of course, as a biologist working on my master’s, I’m probably a little biased :)
Wow, thanks for all the support! Yan (guy who runs the site) suggested to me that I try out some science articles and it looks like our first one went over well. And as Lexigeek mentions, we’re really going to aim at the “science-interested” crowd and not (as much) the “science-educated” crowd. If you ARE an expert do feel free to expound on any points I may have muddled.
By the way, I’m just coming back from a hiatus of about 4 months so it’s nice to hear such comments. :)
Great write-up, thanks.
Great article! You really illustrated this terrible affliction incredibly well by making the science behind it accessible to the layman.
Hopefully the start of what I hope will be a great new regular feature which I’ll look forward too each time :D
Thank you!
Thanks for the info! I love to learn and discover new things all the time so i am totally into the idea of a GaS section devoted to more Science.
They forget to mention all the “cures” that work flawlessly in the lab and then don’t work in the actual human body. The frustration must be maddening.
Thanks for the post and the cartoon. Every little bit helps.
As a medical librarian, I really appreciate you finding ways to disseminate information that people are better off knowing. Too many make decisions (i.e. funding) based on oversimplifications. While the truth may not be as sexy or as easy, it’s a lot more interesting. Thanks for putting it out there.
Good article, would love to see more like this :)
Definitely the most interesting article I have ever read about a subject that I would usually rather not think about. I am in favour of articles like this but I think they could easily slip across the border away from entertainment. If you keep that in mind though you should be able to watch out for the danger.
As the father with a child who got Cancer (Neuroblastoma) when he was two (and thank God he is now 5) I totally understand that Cancer does not just affect the old and those exposed to cancer-causing chemicals. The thing is, since (you are dead on) that is the perception in general (plus the number of children vs adults with cancer #s) the FUNDING is also only directed towards curing the Cancers of adults not children (most major pharmaceuticals want to fund where the payback will be greater, adults, where there are more with the disease). Most large fund raising organizations that fund all cancer research will roll out the little sick kids at fund raising time, but when it’s time to distribute the dollars most of it goes for adult cancer research. That’s why a lot of folks now work very hard to support organizations which fund only childhood cancer research.
Your article was very interesting thank you and your explanation was very good.
Thank you so much for the interesting post. I will admit I have known the word cancer all my life, but now I have an understanding of it. Please keep articles like this one coming. There are a plethora of interesting topics to choose from. In general science you can write about atomic research, alternate renewable energies, and/or physics. In economic sciences some topics could include how inflation works, the federal reserve, and/or compounding interest rates. There are a lot of amazing things to discuss in the world of science outside of our normal tech stuff. Plus, it’s good to know where you can from to understand where you’re going. Keep up the great work, I look forward to future posts.
Very, very interesting, in light of the fact my wife died of ovarian cancer. Looking back on her treatment, the extensive surgery and the whole chemo therapy process seemed totally senseless in light of the presentation made here. She suffered needlessly.
First of all, to those who have lost loved ones, I sympathize with you. To be clear, I don’t mean to imply that our current treatments are needless or that they don’t work. Chemotherapy, as tough to deal with as it is, is based on very sound science. The chemicals target only cells that are dividing. Cancer cells divide more rapidly than almost any other kind of cell, so the chemicals largely affect the cancer and (hopefully) destroy only a limited number of regular cells. Surgery on tumors is also a very effective way of “getting it all out,” especially when the cancer is localized to one area.
I should mention that my father is a survivor of prostate cancer and after having a surgical procedure, he is cancer free for many years now. The doctors who do this work have a great deal of knowledge at their disposal.
In regards to a cure for cancer, I’m really referring to a “pill” or something that can just up and cure the disease. Believe it or not we are not only working on this but some cancers have been cured with just such a method. It isn’t that cancer research is going nowhere, it’s just a very daunting task and people should have a good reference frame when thinking about the disease.
I would definitely like to see more articles on science – I may not be a scientist, but being a geek makes me curious about everything!
This was a great article. It brings an awareness and a basic understanding of a complex subject.
Please make more articles like this.
THANKS for the excellent article,
i had basic knowledge on cancer, but you clarified it with more details and it’s sweet & simple to understand
I love Science related to Astronomy & Health, Cancer is one topic that i follow all the time, but 2 years ago i stumbled on one that’s really interesting, instead of using Chemotherapy which also destroys good cells, this new therapy would only target cancer cells and for any type of cancer, it’s done with Radio Waves & Nanotechnology, just type John Kanzius on google or youtube, you will be amazed …
Keep up the good work.
This was great, thanks! Please do keep writing the Science is Sexy posts!
Great stuff, Jimmy! Yes, Science is Sexy — keep up the good work!
More ! :)
Wow! Thanks for the simplified, yet highly informative, article. I look forward for more Science is Sexy.
Science fascinates me but I have low retention of data,
So I prefer INFO to be CONCISE and INTERESTING,
How I wish to be Scientist But M POOORRRRRRRR hahahah
Anyhow Peace & Happiness to u all
Jimmy, thank you for writing this. Clarification is always a good thing, no matter the topic. This one really hit home though. I look forward to seeing more science articles like this in the future!
They have already found many things that can increase your chances of getting cancer and have also found that eating fruits and vegetables can help your body to fight cancer.
The cure to cancer is through food — fruits, vegetables, and nuts — raw. Unfortunately, our culture is focused around eating milk products and decayed flesh (I am trying to become more vegetarian — I eat the flesh too, yuck) and it is difficult to change.
Check out Norman Walker’s simple to read books on living to old age (Norwalk Press in Prescott, AZ). I just spoke to him personally a month ago — and he said to use “Ultimate Meal” powdered shake for 2 meals a day and eat one meal with that — and you are good.
The reason I say this is — Norman Wardhaugh Walker was born in 1876. Today is June 2009. I did not believe it was possible to meet someone is over 100 years old (133 to be closer) but look at the picture on the “Become Younger” book and the photo of the elderly man is the guy I talked to on my way into a Wells Fargo bank.
I am still in shock myself.
This man has the answer to living — ignore society and eat correctly.
Strong man.
If you really believe that you spoke to Dr. Walker, you are either gifted with the ability to speak to the dead, or kidding yourself. All respectable documentation on the expert you are citing indicate that he died in 1985 at the age of 99.
Always a good idea to check your sources.
Love the article. I read PHDcomics and was psyched to see it referenced. I am a scientist myself, so I obviously support more “Science is Sexy” articles!!
Where is the cure?
It’s hidden in code in the article, duh :P
It’s a great article, I understood more about cancer but you shouldn’t have named the article the cure for cancer
I’m in the biological sciences, but I still find it a great article for everyone! Even though information about several diseases is easier to be achieved these days, people still are confused or misinterpreting things. Great way to clarify (=
Thumbs up to this article- I nice way to make sense of a complicated issue (made more so by all the media surrounding it and the less informed stuff that ends up being read by lots of people).
In 1931 Otto Warburg won a Noble prize, he said that we completely understand cancer and it is easy and inexpensive to prevent. It is fermentation instead of respiration of cells. Can’t happen in well oxygenated environments – hence NO heart cancer.
Laetrile/B17/Apricot kernels DOES cure and prevent cancer, this is long proven and understood.
Repeating the malarkey of the National Cancer Institute or any other of the corporate liars isn’t being a “geek”, it is called being a “shill”.
Oh Deepthinker…where to begin….
First of all, no matter what Otto Warburg said in 1931, he certainly didn’t understand cancer the way we do today. In fact our understanding of molecular genetics has only been strong enough in the last few decades to really get a grasp on the mechanics of oncogenesis. Also, his statement is a symptom of the time…before we understood that “cancer” is not really a thing unto itself but a way we describe a phenomenon.
I’m not familiar with your wonder drug, but even if it can cure/prevent a certain kind of cancer, it probably has a limited range. We have long given up trying to find a single drug to fight all the different kinds of cancer (in fact I think someone wrote an article above these comments about JUST THAT FACT).
One more thing to remember, just because you’ve won the Nobel prize, it doesn’t make you any more or less accountable than the next scientist. We recognize our greatest achievers with the Nobel, but we don’t (and most winners would probably agree with this) take their positions as something absolute. Especially if that position is almost a century old…
thank you so much for this post!
As a cancer survivor (13 years in remission) I thank you for this informative entry. We need to educate more people about what cancer actually is.
Wow very well done! THis was a very well written and informative article explaining a common misconception about cancer. I hope to see more in the future!
If you really want to be a sexy geek get yourself and your PC’s or Mac’s to the World Community Grid – there you really can search for cures and treatments for Cancer or indeed HIV/Aids, Malaria, Muscular Dystrophy.
In the geekiest manner possible Grid Computing using BOINC
461,540 other geeks have already contributed 253,140 years of their PC’s time to this project which launched 16th November 2004.
Now if that’s not something a sexy geek should be doing I don’t know what is
Hey we even support Linux as well as other less Geeky OS’s
Make it a great day
Dave
I like the idea. And in addition, I’d personally like to see informative blogs on nutrition, fitness and general body maintenance.
P.S. some of the less sexy geeks resembling the Simpson’s Comic Book Guy might benefit from this info.
very well written this article. congratulations!
That comic wasn’t funny at all. :(
It’s not supposed to be funny Jeff, but only informative…
Hey, I just want to thank everybody who’s laid down a nice comment over the last few months! It’s kind of an old article at this point, but it’s nice to know that people are still seeing it and enjoying my little “lecture” on cancer.
CyberKnife, ladies and gentlemen. Expensive as heck, but as good as it gets right now.
Nanotechnology will be able to cure cancer in the future, don’t worry. It doesn’t matter how many types of cancer there are, if you can remove the cells it’s all good. Currently there has been quite some succes with curing breast & lung cancer by using tiny nanobee’s who inject a substance that kills the cells. Once the technology gets more advanced, we might be able to have nanorobots remove the cells themselves as if they were very very tiny surgeons.
But maybe this is wishfull thinking…
And SoCal Gal: Norman Walker died in ‘95 at the age of 99..
I mean ‘85.
I think the increased growth rate of cancer cells is what makes cancer so bad… the fact that those cells live forever isn’t the issue.
What if all of our cells lived forever?
I think that the secret to immortality is learning to gain control of Telomeres (Google it). If our Telomeres were shortened at a slowed rate, we could live for hundreds of years. If we learned to stop them from shortening, then we would all live forever (unless killed).
Without getting all Sci-Fi on you, an immortal race wouldn’t exactly be all bad. Yes, yes, I know we would run low on food at first, but think of some of the problems it would solve. For one, we could finally have enough of a lifespan that we could travel from one solar system to another… or another galaxy for that matter!
I am really greatful for your article. As a young cancer researcher (i work with ovarian cancer) i have come to the conclusion that until we stop investigating tiny parts of the pathway causing cancer to spread and survive, and concentrate on the big picture and link everything together, we are unlikely to come up with a magic potion to kill all cancer. Unfortunately, that would require massive collaboration and funding, and the governments are just not willing to throw that kind of money at it.
It is a satisfying career path, but it’s exhausting, and every question’s quest for answers uncovers dozens of new questions
Worse yet is the lack of journals publishing negative results. I sometimes worry that i am doing the same experiments others before me have done, and that had their negative results been published maybe i could’ve spent my tie on something new, rather than repeating failed experiments. When it comes to cancer, no piece of the puzzle should go unpublished. even if negative results were to go into some online only journal, it could be very helpful to the rest of us.
But…sometimes someone elses negative is your positive.
Hold on.
The cure is laetrile/apricot seeds/bitter almonds/B-17
A Nobel prize given to Otto Warburg for figuring out cancer is the body fermenting instead of respirating as it should. Can’t happen where the body is well oxygenated and alkaline, as evidenced by the lack of heart cancer. (The periphery of the lungs is NOT well oxygenated, btw).
Laetrile combines with the acid of the cancer and makes cyanide, killing the cancer cell. There is also a product called Essiac that works.
There has NEVER been any convincing proof that quack medicine such as laetrile or essiac work. Contrary to popular belief there is no consipiracy involving doctors and drug companies to keep these things off the market so that they may continue to make lots of money on surgery and medicines. your posting is not only bunk but its cruel bunk.
Strengthen the immune system; and prevent/reverse cancer. The standard American diet, SAD, (and other pollutants) create 95% of cancer cases. It takes major lifestyle changes people are not even willing to look at, much less practice. Start with researching two outstanding and much maligned researchers Dr. Virginia Livingston and Dr. Johanna Budwig–you’ll be amazed, I promise!!! (Of course, this is my opinion only and not medical advice–as required.)
Ok, srsly one of the best articles I have read in a while. Why can’t the “mainstream” media present ideas in this manner. Thanks for taking the time to put this out there and … cool illustrations …
Awesome article I really loved the information but the title leads you to hope especially when your Aunt just passed from Cancer and your cousin has it also.
But thanks for helping me understand Cancer more thoroughly.
As a 42 year survivor of an aggressive and rare form of bone cancer (chondrosarcoma), I applaud you on introducing this subject. I’ve run an online support group for chondrosarcoma the last eight years with over 1500 members. Frustrated by the lack of new methods of treatment and no possible cure in site, I have read many medical articles on the subject and have learned, like you, that there is no one “cure for cancer” as there is no one cure for cancer simply for one type of cancer. There are too many variables. As far as I know, the reason I have survived when things were so stacked against me with seven recurrences over eleven years is that I took part in a primitive style of vaccine trial. This has worked for a certain kind of bladder cancer and a certain type of skin cancer, but it went no further than me, because I was the only one in the study and I was not followed up upon. Too bad. However, because of this, I suspect that vaccine is the future of the cure for many types of cancer. The drawback being that if you develop antibodies to your cancer, you then risk the problem of having permanent autoimmune type of disease if your body is continuing to fight off the original cancer’s attempts to return, as this is what has happened with me. The important thing, I think, is that the patient’s own cancer cells (which really are specific to them) need to be used to create the vaccine, and then all signs of the cancer need to be irradicated from the body (surgically or otherwise) so that it has a fresh start. In some types of cancer, this may not be possible. This of course is my own personal unscientific unsubstantiated opinion, based upon my own experience and the extensive reading I’ve done in medical scientific articles, plus discussions with doctors and researchers.
Jimmy, I appreciate the fact that you have written this for the understanding of the general public who have little scientific knowledge (sadly, this is our educational system, today) and clarifies the mistaken notion that there is only one possible method for curing cancer.
You mentioned how frustrating it must be to researchers that what appears to be promising in the petri dish, turns out to be ineffective on humans. One thing I see in this regard with the patients in my group who participate in the trials of these newly developed drugs is that the human body cannot tolerate the side effects. That issue is not studied in the petri dish. Therefore the failure of such promising studies.
A few, in responding, have erroneously made claims of “true” cures for cancer. I can attest to the fact that many of the patients in my group have led lives pure of chemicals, eating a so called proper diet and still have ended up with this rare bone cancer.
I might point out that if there really were a true cure for cancer, such has been suggested, that no amount of the “evil” drug companies attempts to control and keep secret that knowledge, would prevent that news from getting out and being effective. There are other countries who do not have such controls. And think about this, please…Truly there are doctors who, themselves, get cancer, as well as, and especially, their children, who, if given the chance, would use those methods to cure themselves and their family members of cancer. Would it be possible to keep this a secret?
I hope to see more on this subject and would like to see more on the ideas of apoptosis presented in a simple understandable format. As well as some views of the different types of cancer and why a cure for one would not work as a cure for another.
There is new research, and trials regarding the idea of vaccinating against certain cancers. I hope, too, that you might present some information on this topic.
Great article Jimmy. I lost my two closest friends to cancer (colon, lung), so I have a special reverence/hatred for the “Big C”.
Elizabeth, I am curious. How can a vaccine “work” for cancer – especially if the body/immune system no longer recognizes the “bad” cell as being bad? Normally, a vaccine is created from a weakened version of whatever it is that ails you, and your immune system can whip it easily. Does the same theory apply to cancer cells, and how would you get the weakened version? From a patient who has already been “cured”? I dunno, maybe I’m missing something here…
Thanks for the props.
I believe cancer vaccines operate by tuning the immune system to target something specific related to the cancer cells. Some vaccines are therapeutic and can be administered after a disease has occurred in the body to help bolster the response.
I’m not really any expert on these though, so maybe someone else can supply some more info.
I know this article is kind of old, but I’m gonna put my comments anyhow.
I really like the way you wrote all this information in a simple and understandable way. I had a different (and wrong) idea of what cancer was and how it developed in our bodies.
Science is Sexy?? Of course!!! I’d be glad to subscribe to your RSS and follow you on your day to day task of informing us…
Good luck in your PhD!
Very nice article! The complication of “big C” reduced to understandable terms and explanations. Love it. Also, this article emphasizes one very important concept: you should do everything possible to protect, preserve and enhance your immune system. It is the very BEST defense you have against Ca. Once the immune system begins to break down, Cancer is a frequent raider. So many people don’t understand this but those who have been taking exceptional vitamin and mineral supplements for years seem to evade Ca for longer periods of time. Why? Vitamins and minerals help maintain and build strong immune systems. Not your regular OTC V&M but more powerful (and thus) expensive ones that are usually manufactured by specialty programs.
A very good piece. I would welcome more life sciences articles.
would you write an article regarding Candida Albicans ? I think many people would be interested.
Great post !
Thanks a lot !!!
Very useful facts. Infact, most of the things I’ve never heard of before. Thank you for this interesting facts.