"Not very long ago, the rituals and symbols of healing constituted the bulk of the physicians armamentarium. In the early decades of the 20th century, most of the medication that doctors carried in their little black bags and kept in their office cabinets had little or no pharmacological value against the maladies for which they were prescribed. Nevertheless, their use in the appropriate clinical context was no doubt frequently beneficial."(Brown, 6)

Even though placebos have been proven effective medicine time and time again the FDA remains reluctant to approve them for anything more than clinical research. The FDA stands on their disapproval of placebos as medicine on the basis that patients are to be given the best trea

There are an endless variety of cases that have proven placebos inconclusively effective. Among the most famous of these cases is the story of "Mr. Wright," who was found to have cancer and in 1957 was given only days to live. Hospitalized in Long Beach, California, with tumors the size of oranges, he heard that scientists had discovered a horse serum, Krebiozen, that appeared to be effective against cancer. After Wright begged to receive the serum, his physician, Dr. Philip West, finally agreed and gave wright the injection on a Friday afternoon, not telling Wright that injection consisted only of water. The following Monday the doctor was astonished to find that the patient's tumors were gone. Dr. West later wrote the tumors, " had melted like snowballs on a hot stove." At Tulane University, Dr. Eileen Palace has been using a placebo to restore sexual arousal in women who say they are nonorgasmic. The women are hooked up to a biofeedback machine that they are told measures their vaginal blood flow, an index of arousal. Then they are shown sexual stimuli that would arouse most women. The experiment then tricks the women by sending a false feedback signal, within 30 seconds, that their vaginal blood flow has increased. Almost immediately after they become genuinely aroused. In another case a study was carried out in Japan on 13 people that were extremely allergic to poison ivy. Each individual was rubbed on one arm with a harmless leaf and told

Kwik, Jessica. "Placebo Power as Good Medicine." Imprint Online: Science. 23, January 1998: volume 20, number 23. A collection of statistics and doctors descriptions of placebo treatment success rates. This was an excellent source of statistical facts along with various views to support the placebo effect.

against many terminal illnesses, such as cancer and AIDs, is because of the way the diseases are presented to us, as incurable. Who could ever believe that you could be cured if you where told that you where going to die.

Some common words found in the essay are:
Eileen Palace, Drug Administration, Magazine April, Online Science, , York Times, Hospital Practice, Beach California, Placebo Mind/Brain/Behavior, Philip West, placebo effect, poison ivy, theories placebo, excellent source, incorporated modern medicine, impossible prove, medical field, modern medicine, incorporated modern, rely placebo, harmless leaf, collection theories placebo, vaginal blood flow, rely placebo effect, theories placebo effect,
Approximate Word count = 1444
Approximate Pages = 6 (250 words per page double spaced)