Medicine Looks Ahead 251 



out biotin, which means that without biotin no life could have 

 arisen on earth. 



Biotin is found in the yolk of all eggs. In order to check 

 biotin's enormous growth-promoting powers, nature has pro- 

 vided a brake in the form of an antibiotin substance, named 

 avidin, in the egg white. The synthesis of biotin now prom- 

 ises to shed light on the structure of avidin, its counterpart in 

 the "balance wheel of life." When biotin is made available in 

 large amounts it is hoped that it will provide important clues 

 for new weapons not only against cancer but also against 

 tuberculosis, since no bacteria have so far been found that can 

 exist without biotin. 



A Clue to Cancer 



Medical men have improved the methods of diagnosis and 

 of early operation so that a good many cancer patients can be 

 saved. But cancer remains the most terrible of all diseases. At 

 the present rate, one of every eight individuals now living will 

 die of cancer. No one knows what goes wrong in cells, and 

 particularly in their growth processes, so that one or a few 

 run wild and multiply beyond reason. 



Not only has biotin been found to stimulate normal growth 

 but, under certain conditions not yet fully known, it has been 

 found to stimulate abnormal growth, such as the uncontrolled 

 growth of cancer cells. This does not mean that biotin would 

 cause cancer. It does mean, however, that if the unknown 

 conditions causing cancer exist the presence of biotin would 

 stimulate development of the process. 



Professor Ira I. Kaplan of the New York University Col- 

 lege of Medicine, and director of the Cancer Division of 

 Bellevue Hospital, is carrying out tests which seek to control 

 cancer by the administration of large daily doses of dried raw 

 egg white. It is hoped that avidin, the antibiotin substance in 



