Editing 1217: Cells
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Here, [[Randall]] reminds us that there's no need to get excited upon hearing about a drug that kills cancer cells. In general, killing cancer cells is not too impressive for a drug, since something as mundane as a handgun is capable of destroying cancer cells too. On top of that, many substances that kill cancer cells can also harm healthy cells, just as a bullet fired from a handgun would. Cancer treatments may involve generally harmful effects that are carefully applied to preferentially harm cancer cells as much as possible whilst doing the least amount of unavoidable damage to the rest of the body as is practical. | Here, [[Randall]] reminds us that there's no need to get excited upon hearing about a drug that kills cancer cells. In general, killing cancer cells is not too impressive for a drug, since something as mundane as a handgun is capable of destroying cancer cells too. On top of that, many substances that kill cancer cells can also harm healthy cells, just as a bullet fired from a handgun would. Cancer treatments may involve generally harmful effects that are carefully applied to preferentially harm cancer cells as much as possible whilst doing the least amount of unavoidable damage to the rest of the body as is practical. | ||
| β | The title text suggests that even if a drug did only kill cancer cells while leaving healthy cells alone, the human body still has many other complex processes that may render a drug that works in a petri dish insufficient. For instance, a drug that kills cancer cells in a petri dish may not be able to get at cancer cells deep within a human body | + | The title text suggests that even if a drug did only kill cancer cells while leaving healthy cells alone, the human body still has many other complex processes that may render a drug that works in a petri dish insufficient. For instance, a drug that kills cancer cells in a petri dish may not be able to get at cancer cells deep within a human body. It is a long way from the laboratory to the pharmacy. |
A more humorous interpretation of the title text is that it will only kill cancer cells if they are in petri dishes, and not anywhere else. The naming convention here is similar to "lung cancer", breast cancer", etc., but of course, petri dishes are not normally a part of human organism.{{Citation needed}} Less probably, it might be about cancer cells that originated from, but are not necessarily located within, petri dishes, making the scenario even more oddly specific. | A more humorous interpretation of the title text is that it will only kill cancer cells if they are in petri dishes, and not anywhere else. The naming convention here is similar to "lung cancer", breast cancer", etc., but of course, petri dishes are not normally a part of human organism.{{Citation needed}} Less probably, it might be about cancer cells that originated from, but are not necessarily located within, petri dishes, making the scenario even more oddly specific. | ||
