Can Clerics Cure Cancer?

[jeffman]

Viruses can cause cancer

don't 'catch' cancer like you catch a cold - it develops pretty much on its own

I'd just like to quickly add that a percentage and certain types of cancer are caused by viruses (something like 20%?)

Could do remove disease, and roll a percent die

 

[Twowolves]

HPV, a virus, causes cervical cancer. Ergo, cancer is a disease. There are other examples, but this one is the most common.

Even if you don't think Remove Disease would cure it, Heal certainly would.

 

[Rystil Arden]

HPV, a virus, causes cervical cancer. Ergo, cancer is a disease. There are other examples, but this one is the most common.

Even if you don't think Remove Disease would cure it, Heal certainly would.

Huh? How can you possibly claim that just because some cancers can be enabled by a disease that this means cancer is a disease? That's like saying that because some people dye their hair blonde, blonde hair is unnatural.

Cancer is the result of cells that have a genetic error that causes them to ignore the body's signals to perform apoptosis (Cell suicide) and to continue to duplicate rapidly despite any signals to the contrary. This could be caused by a disease, by consuming carcinogenic substances, or just through natural degradation in the body's transcription mechanisms.

 

[Dracandross]

Anyway, as far as my personal take on would Cure Disease take care of cancer, I'd say that no, technically it doesn't. Despite falling under the general category of 'malady' and being classified as a disease here and now, it's not a function of some hostile external agency setting up shop in your body. Cancer is a function of your own body's operations going very, very wrong to the point where it's harmful to itself.

Well it's not that strict. Cancer cells are your own cells, but they don't anymore react to body's regulation. Therefore they could be viewed as 'external' from body's point of view. Body's functions work, cells just wont respond to that. Anyway cell needs some external damage to change that way. If compared at DNA level, its different from other cells.

How would you classify virus that infects cell and changes it to do whatever it pleases. Cell is still 'yours' but its not working as intended.

And howabout mitochondrias, they are wieved as symbiotic and essential to you, but originating from different source than cell itself (same with plants chloroplasts).

Just technically Id allow cure disease to cure cancer because 5th level cleric is already quite rare. And there's nothing fitting below 5th. Of course that would mean paladins are immune to cancer too.

-Dracandross

 

[Corsair]

Of course that would mean paladins are immune to cancer too.

Immune to cancer, special mount...


Gimme a hat, and my next paladin will be the Marlboro Man.

 

[Felix]

Gimme a hat, and my next paladin will be the Marlboro Man.

HA!

 

[STARP_Social_Officer]

I think the people who said a heal spell would definitely cure cancer are right. I just don't think remove disease is the right way to go. Plus, as Dracandross pointed out, if remove disease works on cancer then paladins are immune from it, and that strikes me as definitely not the intention. I don't know about you, though.

 

[irdeggman]

First off what the D&D equivalent of cancer and mental conditions needs to be defined.

Part of this definition needs to be how they work.

Then how to "treat" and "cure" the two needs to be addressed. Since the game has magical means of performing just about anything, including overcoming death then there needs to be a magic means of "treating/curing" these two.

If you have introduced "cancer" into your game without having a predetermined means of handling/treating/curing it then you have created a huge "Catch 22" and probably deserve it. Sorry, but when something "new" is introduced the DM needs to evaluate all the issues revolving around it first.

 

[Twowolves]

Huh? How can you possibly claim that just because some cancers can be enabled by a disease that this means cancer is a disease? That's like saying that because some people dye their hair blonde, blonde hair is unnatural.

Cancer is the result of cells that have a genetic error that causes them to ignore the body's signals to perform apoptosis (Cell suicide) and to continue to duplicate rapidly despite any signals to the contrary. This could be caused by a disease, by consuming carcinogenic substances, or just through natural degradation in the body's transcription mechanisms.

I know exactly what cancer is and how it works, moreso than just about anyone who posts on these boards I'd think, since both my wife and I are scientists that work in the field and both have parents that have/have had cancer. But do you honestly think that in a fantasy world where the concept of cancer is pretty much unknown, and the idea of a virus is unheard of, that a magical cure for "diseases" wouldn't automatically be geared to also fix "this disease Shirley got after having a lot of sex"?

Like it or not, cancer is a disease, no matter what the cause, and no matter how communicable it is. Any semantics that say "well, it's not like you can get it by someone coughing on you" is a strawman arguement. It is not a genetic defect (although susceptibility to it is definately genetic), you (usually) aren't just born with it, you get it from exposure to harmful agents from the environment. And if your society can't understand the difference between "carcinogen" and "germ", then how would that 5th level cleric know the difference?

 

[RigaMortus2]

Immune to cancer, special mount...


Gimme a hat, and my next paladin will be the Marlboro Man.

Now that is a funny concept, a Paladin that drinks and smokes a lot, knowing full well they won't ever get cancer or liver disease from it. So they take advantage of it.