DCA Cancer Cure? Nope, just another Hoax. See Snopes.

[liveonearth]

This was passed on by a health-interested friend on facebook:
http://www.sott.net/articles/show/228583-Scientists-cure-cancer-but-no-one-takes-notice

My reply was along the lines of:

Interesting, but I wonder; why haven't I heard about this? The article says I can access the original science "here" but the hyperlink isn't there. And I wonder, can the same effect (as is claimed for dichloroacetate) be had by modulating metabolism by other means? They don't postulate a mechanism for the action on mitochondria. I remain skeptical. Show me the science.

A little research reveals that it is indeed a hoax.
http://www.snopes.com/politics/medical/cancercure.asp
http://www.cancer.org/AboutUs/DrLensBlog/post/2010/05/14/More-On-Dichloroacetate-(DCA)-In-Cancer-Treatment.aspx

Comments

[ford-prefect42.livejournal.com]

I am always supremely sceptical of "spectacularly profitable thing X discovered, discovery is buried by greedy companies".

The only thing that comes close is "X, therefore you need to cede control over your standard of living to this commitee".

It's virtually always the case that X is wrong.

[liveonearth.livejournal.com]

Virtually always may me a little stronger than I'd say, but basically we agree. I can think of a few medical examples of useful treatments being badmouthed or even banned due to the efforts of pharmacomedical business. I don't know as much about other fields.

Example: The amino acid tryptophan was banned in the US due to one bad batch, a very short time before the first SSRI was introduced.

Of course some so-called medical treatments DESERVE to be badmouthed but that's entirely another matter.

[ford-prefect42.livejournal.com]

:) With dorks like you and I, it's important to look at the specific phraseology. "Virtually always" != always, and "supremely sceptical" != "don't believe". After a heckofalot of conversations with "lay-people" I frequently fall into the same problem, of reading what is generally there, rather than what is specifically there.

[liveonearth.livejournal.com]

My typing is getting worse, too.

[ford-prefect42.livejournal.com]

Hell, half the time, I let typos slide these days. Looking at modern text-speak, it's hard to be a speech conniseur.