Introduction to Understanding and Background

In 1999, there were more than 360 drugs available in the United States to treat cancer. Those 360 compounds are the pharmaceutical arsenal, the "magic bullets," being used to treat and prevent cancer. Who discovered that each of these compounds somehow affected those "runaway" cells that we know as cancer? Where do those compounds come from? Do they occur naturally, or are they created in a laboratory? What was life like before these drugs were discovered? What kind of person does it take to discover a drug that can fight cancer?

In this module you will explore the answers to those question—and more. You will be able to read about the history of discoveries that preceded cancer chemotherapy. You will read about the search for chemical substances that can interact with cancer cells and alter their behavior. And, you will read about three of the people—three of many—who played pivotal roles in our understanding of how some compounds do, in fact, interact with cancer cells to provide a therapy for the disease. The readings will transport you to their labs and to their lives.

Whether you are reading about the broad sweep of chemotherapy's history or about one of the individual scientists in this module, you should try to understand how ideas and discoveries emerge from other ideas and discoveries. You should remember that the history of cancer chemotherapy, like all history, is about people and their individual stories, and only when those stories are woven together are we able to understand how important each story really is.

The readings in this section of the module include:

Cancer Chemotherapy: A Timeline
Cancer Chemotherapy: A Chemical Needle in a Haystack
Gertrude Belle Elion: A Lifeline
George Hitchings: Pharmaceutical Achiever
Paul Ehrlich: Pharmaceutical Achiever