

Modified ecstasy 'attacks blood cancers' - ColinWright
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-14572284

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edkennedy
Someone finally realized we can have our medicine and have fun too. One day we
will not have to wade through three pages of possible side effects to get the
treatment we need. Instead, it may have side benefits.

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william42
Do you really think that common recreational drugs have no side effects?

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edkennedy
No, that's not what I was saying. I'm saying that the future of drugs should
include positive side effects, benefits. Right now anything positive in a drug
is considered recreational and avoided completely. Hence the perfect drug in
this day and age eliminates disease but is otherwise completely neutral.

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ighost
Kind of strange that they only used the street name exclusively when referring
to the drug.

It's MDMA, BBC.

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sliverstorm
It's the BBC. You have to speak appropriately for your audience.

Not to say the BBC's audience is a bunch of ecstasy addicts, but they aren't
all chemistry PhD's either. Most people know drugs by their street name.

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rahoulb
Although my daughter and her friends call it MDMA - ecstasy is what old people
from the 20th century (like me) call it.

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davedx
MDMA usually means in pure/cystal form, ecstasy usually in pills.

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rahoulb
They talk about MDMA tablets though. I guess it's just each generation putting
a stamp on it - like I would say "draw" instead of "pot"

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ff0066mote
_The researchers, in collaboration with the University of Western Australia,
have chemically re-engineered ecstasy by taking some atoms away and putting
new ones in their place._

That sounds like a nod to Mitch Hedburg's line about fixing one of his
jokes...

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akavi
I really would appreciate if they'd SHOW what those modifications look like.

Alternatively, link to the study(ies) and let me see for myself.

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fl3tch
PubMed is your friend:

<http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21850491>

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akavi
Thank you.

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wgx
How will the Daily Mail react: "Ecstasy Cures Cancer" headline seems unlikely.

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shabble
WHAT WOULD DIANA THINK? BOFFINS ANNOUNCE NEW CANCER DRUG THAT CAN BE ABUSED BY
RAVE YOBS!

~~~
wgx
"Asylum Seekers" will be involved somewhere.

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jdelsman
First line:

"Modified ecstasy could one day have a role to play in fighting some blood
cancers, according to scientists."

Role. Haha.

