Men Without Chests and now Men Without Stomachs

The idolization of technology is having a dangerous effect on humanity -- here it quite literally making us less human.

Stanford was among the first to begin counseling families with inherited genes that increase their chance of contracting stomach cancers—and offering some an operation to eliminate the risk of it ever occurring.

That was an offer the Bradfield cousins who tested positive for the CDH1 mutation accepted. Six of the cousins including Slabaugh had their stomachs removed at Stanford by surgeon Jeff Norton, MD. For them, as with others, testing meant an end to constant worries about the future.

Stomach cancer would be horrible, I'm sure, and the article says that individuals with this certain mutated gene have a 70-80 percent chance of developing stomach cancer, but this still does not seem like the most rational approach. If this gene can be detected years before any cancer has developed, why not just employ regular checkups to catch the cancer right as it begins and then remove the stomach? At least before there was a 20-30 percent chance of having a "normal" stomach for their entire lives; now these individuals have reduced that possibility to zero. I can guarantee you that you will never stub your toe if you amputate your leg, but I think most people would find my guarantee silly. I bet some would see the benefit as long as I told them the process uses a state-of-the-art genetic bio-laser that can only be fueled by stem cells from aborted fetuses. Cutting-edge! I would also make sure I borrow some of the language from the stomach-stealing Stanford scientists:

For those who inherited the mutated version of the gene, knowledge means power. They had their stomachs removed before discovering signs of cancer, thus evading their genetic destiny.

Who could argue with that?