Let's take a look at the magnificent history of the struggle between human beings and cancer, which is worth collecting

Finishing: Nangong Mingyue

Source: Stem Cell Man said

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As long as people are alive and cells are still dividing, there is a risk of cancer, as Bill said As Bryson wrote in A Brief History of the Human Body: You have 5 chances
of getting cancer every day.
It's just that most of the time, it's the immune system that saves us
.
However, the immune system may also miss one day, and cancer cells will evolve into mature forms under the pursuit of the immune system, and eventually grow into tumors
.

Today let's take a look at this magnificent history
of the struggle between human beings and cancer.

One

The earliest medical description of cancer 

A scroll of Egyptian papyrus written in 2500 BC: "A raised lump in the chest.
.
.
It was as if touching a wad of linen.
.
.
"Speaking of the treatment, the ancient scribe wrote: "Hopeless"
.
The earliest medical description
of cancer.

The earliest documented cancer

Anatomist Andreas Vesalius (1514-1564) wanted to find out the source of
black bile, a carcinogenic body fluid.
Since Vesali could not find black bile in the patient's body, he began to search for the true cause of the cancer and how to treat it
.

Look for sources of carcinogenic fluids

Medieval surgeons used primitive surgical procedures to treat cancer
.
Johannes Scultetus described a mastectomy
that used burning, acid etching and belt binding.

Ancient mastectomy

 2 

The rise of radical surgery

Between 1800 and 1900, surgeons invented radical surgical resection on an increasing scale, hoping to cut the cancer out of patients
.
In the 90s of the 19th century, William Stewart Halstead of Johns Hopkins University invented radical mastectomy, which involves the breast, the muscles under the breast, and related lymph nodes
.

Invention of radical mastectomy

Halstead wrote: "I do not want to destroy the body
of this young female patient.
In this print, Halstead portrays an ideal patient
.
In fact, real cancer patients are common in older women with larger tumors, and they often cannot tolerate the blow
of this radical surgery.

Radical mastectomy

Three

The advent of radiotherapy and chemotherapy

After the Curies discovered radium, oncologists and surgeons began treating tumors
with large doses of radiation.
But radiation itself was carcinogenic: Marie Curie died of leukemia caused by decades of exposure to X-rays
.

The discoverers of radium --- the Curies

During World War II, dozens of tons of mustard gas were released into the air during an air raid in the
Italian port of Bari.
Because mustard gas can kill normal white blood cells in the body, pharmacologists hope to be able to treat leukemia
with similar compounds.
In fact, the advent of chemotherapy (chemical warfare against cancer cells) was inspired
by war.

The appearance of mustard gas

In 1947, Sidney Farber discovered that a folate analog called aminopterin could rapidly kill rapidly dividing cells
in the bone marrow.
Farber's use of aminopterin achieved unprecedented transient remission
in acute lymphoblastic leukemia.
2-year-old Robert Sandler was one of the
first patients.

Farber used chemotherapy for the first time to treat leukemia

Four

Build a building

Mary Lasker lives in
an all-white apartment in New York City.
She is a legendary entrepreneur, celebrity, lobbyist and public advocate
.
Lasker later became the "savior" of cancer research, and it was her tireless efforts that led to the American war
on cancer.

Advocates of the American war on cancer

Farber's patient Eina Gustafson is known as "Jimmy.
"
Jimmy is a baseball fan who was chosen as the unofficial ambassador
for childhood cancer.
The Jimmy Foundation, founded in 1948, was once the most influential cancer advocacy organization, and baseball star Ted Williams was an active supporter
of the organization.

Anti-cancer advocacy organization: Jimmy Foundation

Sidney Farber was Lasker's confidant, mentor and comrade who provided authoritative medical support
to the war on cancer.
Farber attends the groundbreaking ceremony
of the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in Boston.

Groundbreaking ceremony at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute

Five

Early victory in the war against cancer

In the 60s of the 20th century, Emil Frey (left) and Emil Freirek (right) invented a method
of using highly toxic drugs to treat acute lymphoblastic leukemia at the NCI.

Chemotherapy for acute lymphoblastic leukemia

Radiologist Henry Kaplan cured Hodgkin's disease
using radiation therapy.
Curing lymphocytic leukemia and Hodgkin's disease boosted morale in the war against cancer and increased the possibility of
achieving Farber's "universal therapy.
"

Radiation therapy cured Hodgkin's disease

Six

Political action related to the war on cancer

Buoyed by early chemotherapy victories, cancer prevention and control advocates, led by Lasker and Farber, urged the U.
S.
government to launch a war
on cancer.
In 1969, Laskers placed a full-page ad in The New York Times urging President Nixon to support the war
on cancer.

The New York Times published an article urging Nixon to support the war on cancer

Lasker inspired future generations of public advocates with clever advertising and vivid imagery, including Greenpeace
.

Advocate for waging a war against cancer

Many scientists have criticized the war on cancer for starting too early, arguing that political campaigns cannot achieve medical progress
.

The cartoon reads: "Don't be misled by these scientists – leave everything to the politics of forethought"
.

The counter reads: Magic elixir
.

The pill bottle reads: Suggest handing over control of cancer research to the White House
.

Seven

Cancer prevention is better than cure

In 1775, London surgeon Percival Porter discovered an abnormally high incidence of scrotal cancer among juvenile chimney sweepers, and based on this, he proposed a link between soot and scrotal cancer, thus opening the search for preventable carcinogens in the environment
.

Look for carcinogens in the environment

In the 50s of the 20th century, innovative research confirmed the link
between smoking and lung cancer.
However, in the 60s of the 20th century, early warning labels on cigarette packages avoided the word "cancer"
.
It wasn't until decades later that federal agencies required clear warning labels
on cigarette packaging.

Smoking and lung cancer

Although smoking rates have begun to decline in most developed countries, aggressive marketing and unbridled political lobbying have allowed the tobacco industry to thrive in other countries and create a new generation of smokers (and future cancer victims).

A new generation of smokers

Eight

Anti-cancer is all about perseverance

Harold Varmers and Michael Bishop discovered that cancer is caused
by the activation of endogenous precursor genes present in all normal cells.
Cancer cells, Varmers writes, are "a distortion of the normal self.
"

Cancer cells are a distortion of the "normal self"

Working with collaborators around the world, MIT's Robert Weinberg discovered twisted genes
in mouse and human cancer cells.

Discovery of abnormal genes in mouse and human cancer cells

Scientists have sequenced the entire genome of many cancer specimens (23,000 genes in total), making it possible to
record every genetic change (relative to normal genes).
These dots represent mutated genes found in colon cancer, with common mutated genes forming "hills" and "peaks.
"

Genetic sequencing of cancer specimens

In the 90s, Barbara Bradfield was one of the first women to receive Herceptin, which specifically attacks breast cancer cells.

Bradfield is the longest-surviving survivor of this treatment, and there are no signs
of cancer left in her body.

One of the first women to receive Herceptin treatment: Barbara

In 2012, Emily became the world's first child with leukemia (ALL) to receive CAR-T cell therapy, and now, the cancer cells in her body have completely disappeared for 10 years, and even former US President Barack Obama was personally welcomed by her anti-cancer experience, and she became the face of this epic therapy and went down in history
.

In 2022, Emily's 10th
year of cancer-free survival.
Emily celebrates her 10th anniversary
as the first to receive a successful cure after receiving CAR-T cell therapy.
This bald little girl who was almost killed by death ten years ago has now become a 17-year-old girl in the flower season
.

The first child to receive CAR-T cell therapy: Emily

Human understanding of cancer has undergone earth-shaking changes, and the means of fighting cancer have changed from the initial helplessness to today's surgery, radiotherapy, chemotherapy, biological immunotherapy, gene therapy and other effective measures
.
The pace of progress and development in medicine is astounding
.
No matter how horrible the pessimists portray cancer, and no matter how miraculous the optimists say immunotherapy, the war between humanity and cancer has at least entered a strategic stalemate phase
.
Although mankind has recovered many positions, there are still many hard bones that cannot be gnawed
.

Why I always call on everyone to love science, today I finally found the hardest reason: one day, when we encounter cancer, you will hope from the bottom of your heart, hoping that technology can develop faster!

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