Thread by @ScienceIsDope_

Thread: How Steve Jobs died because of alternative medicine.
1. Steve Jobs is perhaps one of the giants of human history who single handedly changed the course of civilization with innovations in smartphones and computing.

2. But for such a towering figure in the landscape of science, he also endorsed a lot of pseudoscience. He supported a lot of Eastern spirituality, which is riddled with pseudoscience. He also used to be a big believer in Complementary and Alternative Medicine and lifestyle ideas

3. In 2003, he was diagnosed with a rare form of pancreatic cancer called gasteroenteropancreatic neuroendocrine tumor (GEP-NET), which isn’t the usual rapidly fatal form of pancreatic cancer we encounter.

4. This is a kind of slow growing cancer that can be CURED if it’s caught early and the tumor is removed surgically. But he chose to delay the surgery for 9 months and instead opted for CAM therapies including acupuncture, botanicals and special diets. ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/P…

5. He had the surgery in 2004 but died 7 years later. The details of his treatment have not been disclosed so nobody can say with any certainty that the delay in surgery was what caused his death...

6. ...or that he survived for that long because of CAM therapies, although there are people who’ll argue both points.

7. The only thing we can say for sure is that based on what little literature exists on this rare type of cancer, had he opted for surgery early, he’d most likely be with us today. But all we can do now is learn from what happened to him.

8. This is especially important for India because India is the hub of all kinds of alternative medicines. With an entire ministry for promoting it. If alternative medicines don’t harm people themselves(which they do btw, ask @drabbyphilips ), they still create these options...

9. ...that people consider and end up wasting precious time by not getting necessary care. The issue is made worse by celebrities who endorse CAM.

10. This study cites 38% of cancer patients enrolled were using CAM therapies to treat their cancer - most of them on the advice of family and friends. Please don’t delay someone from getting necessary care. Whether it's you, or someone you know.
ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/P…