This week, for required viewing, I might choose the Australian series Apple Cider Vinegar (Netflix), that has clear lessons for those dangerously acting on our health and biomedical research landscapes. The series is factually based and follows two young women on their quest for ‘natural’ cancer therapies. One of the main characters has cancer but is terrified to follow the treatments recommended by her doctors; the other pretends to have cancer that she has cured with natural remedies. Both get followers who are looking for hope and something easier than the terribly difficult and draining but clinically proven cancer therapies. The outcomes are devastating and highlight both the danger of following self-care or unproven therapies and perhaps more importantly, the power of 21st century medicine.
People get sick. You may understand that it’s only in the last century when effective treatments for some illnesses have been devised. Devised by insightful, careful experimentation and analysis. The desperation of illness in historical times engendered ‘cures’ based on quackery and superstition, that unfortunately continue. At best, these did no further harm, at worst, they killed the person more quickly than the illness. It’s therefore shocking to be advised in 2025, that healthy lifestyles can cure a majority of ills. Certainly, high quality food and exercise contribute substantially to health and wellness, but the outstanding biomedical advances of the last century – vaccines, antibiotics, and the encouraging, growing set of validated therapies including those from brilliant College of Science investigators – are the reason most of us are alive. Still, there are thousands of illnesses that remain incurable and intractable, affecting the families of government officials as well as everyone else. It’s absolutely essential that we conduct rigorous, thoughtful scientific research, with careful comparisons (‘controls’), and thereby develop innovative, validated ways to combat these most difficult diseases and disorders.
I have written before (October 18, 2024, February 14, 2024 for example) to encourage that as a member of the College of Science you take every opportunity to discuss the value of biomedical research, and to listen to concerns of your neighbors and members of the public of every age and stage. Of course, you are welcome to share your insights about science funding with your elected representatives, and through your professional societies who can be voices of concern and protest. We will keep calm, plan strategically and await clarity. Thank you for your ongoing contributions to our important research in the Northeastern University College of Science. Thank you for continuing to build the Good Power of Science through all weathers.
I’ll end with a story. Some long time ago, I was asked to meet with Senator Edward Kennedy who wanted to understand ‘molecular biology’, how the genetic DNA code in our cells controls life, and how it can be used to promote health. We spent a good couple of hours together where I explained in simple terms, and Senator Kennedy asked smart questions. At the end, he thanked me and said he wished I’d been his high school biology teacher. I would be delighted to spend a couple of hours enlightening his nephew, Secretary of Health and Human Services Senator Robert Kennedy Jr. who has been given enormous responsibility in this regard.
