A Cure That May Cost Us Ourselves

A revolution is sweeping medicine--only the fourth one since Hippocrates argued, some 2,400 years ago, that the workings of the body can be explained by the laws of nature rather than the supernatural. The first revolution occurred soon after British surgeon John Snow discovered, in 1854, that cholera is spread by contaminated water: this led to sanitation systems that protected people from the devastating infections that had habitually plagued mankind. The second revolution, surgery with anesthesia, came at about the same time, allowing doctors to readily fix ailments such as appendicitis and bowel obstruction. The third revolution was the introduction of vaccines and antibiotics: many infectious diseases could finally be prevented or cured. But aside from remedying infectious diseases and some surgical problems, we physicians do not actually "cure" anything. Our medicines just help the body heal itself. Our treatments relieve symptoms but do not correct the underlying problems. Human genetic engineering--the fourth medical revolution--will profoundly change the practice of medicine over the next 30 to 40 years. But more than that, its effects will be felt far beyond medicine. It will influence every aspect of our culture. Used carefully, it will increase health and human happiness. But if ... // 86% Remaining