a picture held us captive

Someone once suggested to me that cancer was caused by unresolved mental conflict.

I also read that people suffering from Alzheimer’s had a lower incidence of cancer, which would fit into the theory.

And if you were going to take the thought through, you might say that the emotional suppressant qualities of cigarettes should be taken into account.

I’m not saying it is the case – if there is evidence one way or another I have no idea what it is.

All I am saying is that if that were the case, modern medicine would not be able to recognise it.

From the perspective of our current medical thinking, this idea is simply a huge insult, a foul thought. It is inconceivable that cancer is not a question of cells going wrong, of carcinogens.

The context for a real argument about this kind of thing is clearly missing.