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As a cancer researcher who has an allergic reaction to popsci articles on cancer & CRISPR, the concepts in this article were presented extremely well. I will s

As a cancer researcher who has an allergic reaction to popsci articles on cancer & CRISPR, the concepts in this article were presented extremely well. I will say re: optimism that science for me is always both exciting in that there are always new questions, new answers and new possible treatment, but can also be very disappointing if you expect any one answer to be without very real and confining limitations. The headline "Why [scientist] Has Become Optimistic about Curing Cancer" could have been written a million times about a million emerging or maturing field in cancer research (see: DNA repair, angiogensis, immunotherapy, onco-viruses). We make progress everyday, but my brain usually goes to hibernate when somebody says they're "optimistic about curing cancer". If that time ever comes, I don't imagine it'll explode on the seen, but be a victory of iterations that creeps up on us. I often think of how AIDS is now a treatable chronic illness instead of terminal one, and how that was a success that nearly goes unnoticed since treatments simply got incrementally better over time.

Waterluvian 10y ago
I'm naive to medical science so forgive me if I'm wrong. Aren't there numerous famous examples of medical breakthroughs exploding into the scene? Penicillin and vaccines coming to mind. (at least I don't think those slowly crept up on us?) I don't think a miracle cure is around the corner, but I can see why the layperson may feel like it's plausible, when you look at the miracle cures we have learned about growing up. My perspective is that there are numerous awful diseases that we have sent into oblivion with medical science done by people with far fewer resources than our scientists have today.
- Mz 10y ago
  They tend to be quickly forgotten. Thousands of schizophrenics were cured and released from asylums when antibiotics were discovered. Their mental health problems were rooted in having syphilis. Once cured of syphilis, they were no longer crazy either. Many people have not heard of this incident. We prevented Y2K from becoming an Apocalypse. People now remember Y2K with derision, like "Those fools ever thought it was a threat. Ha!" When oil wells were set on fire as Saddam Hussein departed Kuwait, it was predicted they would burn for years and be a global environmental catastrophe. When it was resolved in six months, it was a footnote in stories with more human drama. It was not celebrated with the degree of fervor that the potential catastrophe was loudly decried. People have a way of sweeping good news under the rug, forgetting it was ever a serious problem and finding something new to loudly bellyache about.

Waterluvian 10y ago

I'm naive to medical science so forgive me if I'm wrong. Aren't there numerous famous examples of medical breakthroughs exploding into the scene? Penicillin and vaccines coming to mind. (at least I don't think those slowly crept up on us?) I don't think a miracle cure is around the corner, but I can see why the layperson may feel like it's plausible, when you look at the miracle cures we have learned about growing up. My perspective is that there are numerous awful diseases that we have sent into oblivion with medical science done by people with far fewer resources than our scientists have today.

Mz 10y ago
They tend to be quickly forgotten. Thousands of schizophrenics were cured and released from asylums when antibiotics were discovered. Their mental health problems were rooted in having syphilis. Once cured of syphilis, they were no longer crazy either. Many people have not heard of this incident. We prevented Y2K from becoming an Apocalypse. People now remember Y2K with derision, like "Those fools ever thought it was a threat. Ha!" When oil wells were set on fire as Saddam Hussein departed Kuwait, it was predicted they would burn for years and be a global environmental catastrophe. When it was resolved in six months, it was a footnote in stories with more human drama. It was not celebrated with the degree of fervor that the potential catastrophe was loudly decried. People have a way of sweeping good news under the rug, forgetting it was ever a serious problem and finding something new to loudly bellyache about.