035 – Chemotherapy and Stents (and Steven Novella!)

 
A Christmas-themed delivery and Stanley-Kubrick-directed opening skit lead Chris and Jonathan to discuss the worth of chemotherapy. Do doctors themselves refuse chemo, and is chemotherapy only effective in 2% of cases? You may be surprised to find out the origin of the latter myth in the Worst Paper Ever (possibly). Also, Jonathan makes Chris cry; will doctors stop stenting stable angina; and Jonathan’s interview with Dr. Steven Novella on the importance of the narrative when debunking false beliefs and on how being an outspoken skeptic has changed Dr. Novella’s social life for the better.
The Worst Paper Ever (possibly): https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15630849
Go to the McGill OSS YouTube channel to see more interviews with skeptical luminaries: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCYlDe7Vc5YS1Z0-FMVJdQAA
Vox pop by Alex Wood.
Jingle by Jillian Kate.
Additional music by Seth Donnelly and Kevin MacLeod.
Theme music: “Troll of the Mountain Swing” by the Underscore Orkestra.
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