The notion that the medical world is devoted to the prevention of killer diseases is a widespread one, but often research is devoted more to treatments rather than cures, as can be seen from the following news item. "The pharmaceutical industry will always fund projects when it is in its best interests to do so. Cancer prevention is not currently one of these, and so Cancer Research UK, the Medical Research Council and the Department of Health have to fund early detection, screening and prevention studies. It is amazing that less than 2 per cent of the total cancer research budget is spent on prevention. We live in a commercial world where nobody is willing to pay very much for vague prevention information - it has to be made more precise and more individual. People value treatment more than prevention, so that's where the profit now lies." (Daily Telegraph, 8 December) Less than 2 per cent of research spent on prevention because treatment is more profitable - truly capitalism is a cancerous society! RD
The Glasgow & Edinburgh Branches Blog. Towards a better understanding of the world, in order to change it.
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