This Week's Links: What Science Can Tell Us About the Past and Future of Disease

Flickr/bartolomeo - African Buffalo like these were nearly wiped out as a species in the Rinderpest epidemic in the 1890's. But thanks to the efforts of UN scientists, Rinderpest was eradicated in 2010.

By Emily Lewis

For once we're talking about the history of disease, and not about making disease history. Modern advances in science have allowed us to chart the genetic code of diseases that plagued mankind for decades. In this case, literally. Researchers are digging up the bodies of "Black Death" victims in London and using them to garner "direct insights into the evolution of human pathogens and historical pandemics."  

If science can do that for the way we see diseases in the past, imagine how it could change the way we see diseases in the future. Already, researchers have invented a game that could use crowdsourcing to help diagnose Malaria, and the day may not be so far off when we have a vaccine for cancer. New technologies are not just changing the way we see disease and the body, but changing what we are able to see. 

But we couldn't talk about the history of disease without mentioning one of our favorite events in modern history, the eradication of Rinderpest. Yes, all you Germanophiles, it's a cow virus. But we can't help it, we just love when the word "virus" and the phrase "wiped out" appear in the same sentence. At the RWI, we're working hard to make the history of Rinderpest the future of all viruses.

Emily Lewis is a graduate of Gordon College with a degree in Communication Arts and Journalism. She lives outside San Francisco, where she's writing a book about her personal journey coming to understand the will of God in regard to sickness.

This Week's Links: The Root of Cancer and the Ethics of Ebola

By Emily Lewis

In our weekly links blog we like to share things, new and old, that have taken our interest here at the RWI. We don't always agree with the source or theory, but we find them to be important contributions to the discussion of disease eradication and/or theodicy.

From the Independent Cancer Research Foundation, here's an interesting and easy-to-read explanation of what might be the root cause of cancer. This is the microbe theory of cancer and the article explains in some detail how the tiny terrorists, also called "microbes," turn a cell cancerous, and what we can do to kill the microbes that cause the cancer in the first place.

Oncologist David Agus, who believes inflammation to be the root cause of cancer, also attests that the key to beating it is to address the problem before it starts. “I want doctors to treat toward health and not toward disease.” Read his five tips for prevention.

Yet another theory for the root of cancer: infection. The BBC reviews Lancet Oncology's report that two million cases of cancer a year could be prevented with proper use of vaccines and antibiotics.

But cancer is not the disease most people are talking about today, in the global fight against disease Ebola is the star of the hour. As we shared on Facebook and Twitter earlier this week, Bjorn Lomborg at the Guardian questions what we should be prioritizing, "It may sound cold-hearted to set health priorities based on cost-effectiveness, but it’s actually the best way to do the most good in the world with limited resources."

The truth is, there are a lot of complicated ethics involved in tackling disease. In this thought-provoking article from Forbes Matthew Herper discusses the ethics of ebola vaccine trials. 

At the beginning of his article, Herper contends, "Ebola virus and other emerging infectious diseases for which we don’t have effective treatments are the reality in public health. And they’re expected to keep on coming."

What do you think? If this is true, how should the people of God respond?

2015: It's the Beginning of the End for Malaria, Mortality, and Maybe Even Humanity?

By Emily Lewis

"In the fight against infectious bacteria, humans are slowly losing the battle . . . By 2050 it’s expected that, globally, drug-resistant infections will kill more people than cancer." Discover Magazine tells the fascinating story of a new class of antibiotic being developed that might just turn the tide.

But speaking of the future of humanity, if you've been counting down the years since TIME Magazine gave us this scoop (like we have at RWI), then you know we only have 30 more to go until technology makes mankind immortal. Happy new year, everyone!

We at the RWI are finding a lot of things to celebrate in 2015, including organizations like Imagine No Malaria  that are daring to dream of a world where diseases are not just treated or cured, but completely eradicated. "Unlike many other diseases that are awaiting a cure, malaria was eliminated in the U.S. in the 1950s. However, in Sub-Saharan Africa, malaria continues to kill a person every 60 seconds. But there is hope . . . our generation can beat malaria once and for all."

And in case you don't know the story of the elimination of malaria in the U.S., here is Malcolm Gladwell's account of the controversial work of Fred Soper, "The Mosquito Killer."

Today's Question: Did God create parasites, or are they the product of malevolent, diabolical tampering? What do you think?