Miracle drug cures everything

Open any newspaper or magazine, and chances are it will have a story about how a disease has been cured, be it diabetes, heart disease, or even obesity. Cures are announced with such excitement, suggesting that it can only be a matter of time before the newspaper headline becomes a doctor's prescription.

Sensationalising often tentative scientific studies goes beyond irresponsible journalism. This style of reporting has far graver ramifications for medicine than just unrealistically raising a patient's hopes.

These stories almost always focus on a cure, or …