Comment & Debate
Treatment of 100 kinds of cancer costs our nation an estimated $107 billion a year. When cancer strikes, cells multiply uncontrollably, gradually overwhelming the body. In the 1930s, less than one cancer victim in five survived for five years. Today, almost half the people diagnosed with cancer will live at least five years, and some never have a recurrence of their disease. There are 8 million Americans alive today who have had cancer.
The chicken provided one of the earliest models of how cancer grows and spreads. An understanding of how viruses cause tumors and the use of hormone treatments to limit tumor growth were developed using rats, mice, rabbits, chickens, monkeys, and horses. Cancer treatments such as chemotherapy drugs, radiation therapy, and various surgical techniques were developed using rodents, dogs, and monkeys, among others.”