Paul Ehrlich in the early 1900s sought a “magic bullet” for each disease (including cancer). Given the alternatives at the time, when he found Salvarsan it could be considered a magic bullet against syphilis. Today Dr. Dale Bredesen has replaced “magic” with “silver” and “bullet” with “buckshot.” In his effort to cure Alzheimer’s “Bredesen believed in firing a “silver buckshot” (a reference to the sprayed pellets that come out of shotgun shells) by modifying 36 factors simultaneously” (Gellman, p. 18).
I have not investigated Dr. Bredesen’s “cure” for Alzheimer’s and express no opinion on it. I will express the opinion that I do not like the arrogantly dismissive tone of Lindsay Gellman’sThe New York Times article, bowing to “experts,” but calling Bredesen “Mr.” instead of the “Dr.” he has earned.
And I do like the idea that sometimes what is effective against a disease (including cancer) is not a single drug or therapy, but several taken together. For example, multi-drug cocktails have been effectively used against HIV, childhood leukemia, and Hodgkin’s lymphoma.
Ehrlich’s big dream was to find a magic bullet for each disease. But maybe it is mostly more promising to dream of the magic buckshot.
[N.B., the “Paul Ehrlich” I refer to is not the contemporary environmental alarmist “Paul Ehrlich” who famously lost his bet with the heroic heretic Julian Simon.]
The NYT article quoted above:
(Note: the online version of the NYT article was updated May 31, 2025, and has the title “An Expensive Alzheimer’s Lifestyle Plan Offers False Hope, Experts Say.”)