One of the most remarkable phenomena of the human body ... for that matter all living things ... is control. Without control our tongue will keep growing till it suffocates us or our heart muscle will grow thicker and thicker till there no room for blood to flow. None of this happens in the healthy state because of remote or local controls on growing cells. A tumor is a condition when cells have escaped the normal controls and formed a collection of abnormal tissue. A cancer is a condition when cells have gone crazy and grow out of control ... here, there and everywhere. Eventually the cancer takes over and drains more and more life giving energy from the host and death becomes imminent.
Biology teaches us many lessons beyond living things.
A healthy living society consists of many societal organs in which balance and control are paramount. We were once a child in need of growth and development. Then we emerged as a splendid young adult. What a spectacle! Then we suffered illnesses, which we have overcome. And now we reach a stage in life at risk for cancer.
Is there an organ in our society that has escaped its control and has grown larger and larger? And has this organ gone crazy growing out of control ... here, there and everywhere sapping us of more and more life giving energy? And at what point will this society die?
Each individual must answer this question for himself/herself. He or she will ponder the reasons for such out of control growth. Can a
grand purpose justify this irrational expansion?
Biology provides another insight. A cancer cell escaping the control of the body can be viewed as its means of achieving immortality. Is there a grander but totally futile purpose than that?
Ron Law, MD