{"product_id":"a-contagious-cause-robin-wolfe-scheffler-9780226628370","title":"A Contagious Cause: The American Hunt for Cancer Viruses and the Rise of Molecular Medicine","description":"Is cancer a contagious disease? In the late nineteenth century this idea, and attending efforts to identify a cancer \"germ,\" inspired fear and ignited controversy. Yet speculation that cancer might be contagious also contained a kernel of hope that the strategies used against infectious diseases, especially vaccination, might be able to subdue this dread disease. Today, nearly one in six cancers are thought to have an infectious cause, but the path to that understanding was twisting and turbulent. \u003cbr\u003e ​ \u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eA Contagious Cause\u003c\/i\u003e is the first book to trace the century-long hunt for a human cancer virus in America, an effort whose scale exceeded that of the Human Genome Project. The government's campaign merged the worlds of molecular biology, public health, and military planning in the name of translating laboratory discoveries into useful medical therapies. However, its expansion into biomedical research sparked fierce conflict. Many biologists dismissed the suggestion that research should be planned and the idea of curing cancer by a vaccine or any other means as unrealistic, if not dangerous. Although the American hunt was ultimately fruitless, this effort nonetheless profoundly shaped our understanding of life at its most fundamental levels. \u003ci\u003eA Contagious Cause\u003c\/i\u003e links laboratory and legislature as has rarely been done before, creating a new chapter in the histories of science and American politics.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/b\u003e Robin Wolfe Scheffler\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-10:\u003c\/b\u003e 022662837X\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-13:\u003c\/b\u003e 9780226628370\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e University of Chicago Press\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eLanguage:\u003c\/b\u003e English\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 06\/15\/2019\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 368\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eFormat:\u003c\/b\u003e Paperback\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 1.20lbs\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSize:\u003c\/b\u003e 8.90h x 6.00w x 1.00d\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eReview Citation(s): \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eChoice\u003c\/i\u003e 11\/01\/2019","brand":"Robin Wolfe Scheffler","offers":[{"title":"Paperback","offer_id":48086420095231,"sku":"9780226628370","price":43.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0662\/2982\/9887\/files\/img_7b8d2965-e192-4ec1-ab13-c2f5257974ca.jpg?v=1769094570","url":"https:\/\/www.whiterainbookhouse.com\/products\/a-contagious-cause-robin-wolfe-scheffler-9780226628370","provider":"WR Book House","version":"1.0","type":"link"}