05-12-2016, 09:55 PM
(05-12-2016, 09:14 PM)Surge Wrote:Well, cancer is basically when a cell's self-replication routines are damaged, making it reproduce out of control, and it goes unrecognized by the cells responsible for destroying such rogue cells. In other words, it's a failure of the current system, designed by natural selection. If we have sufficient mastery of genetics to make biotechnology, it's also probable that we'll be able to make cells that are better able to identify rogue cells (including cancer) an destroy them. We'll have an easier time of it than the immune system, because while the immune system can only change through mutation and natural selection (think of it akin to brute force decryption, trying things randomly until something works), while we can apply intellect and problem-solving to it.(05-12-2016, 09:12 PM)YDH Wrote: But that's how it works now. Internally, our immune systems do it: we have cells that hunt down and destroy foreign invaders, as well as cells that police our own cells and destroy them if they become a threat. Externally, it's what food chains do.And it's unsustainable now. The system fails inevitably and cancer takes hold, destroying everything.