Page 27 - 《中国药房》网络版（科普刊）2024年6期

2024 年 12 月 第 6 期 Xia Ye：Searching for the Trojan Horse Humanistic Pharmacy： From Dream to Reality in 25 Years 23

fictional story is hard to replace with boring factual truth， especially when it serves as evidence to
support one’s own theory.”

I have cited this detailed account to discuss Kekulé’s psychological state and cognitive process，

in an attempt to highlight the core aspect of this case： the humanistic element. The involvement of so

many scientists in this story reveals the power of humanism. Kekulé’s dream is a realistic expression
of a scientist’s intense thinking during the day. Although we may never fully unravel the mystery of

this dream， the one thing we can attribute it to is humanism. Humanism is distinct from any specific

discipline， yet it is intimately connected with all disciplines， much like rain that stealthily enters the
night and nourishes everything in silence. Pharmacy， as the crown jewel of chemistry， shines with

rich humanistic attributes， which is precisely why Humanistic Pharmacy captivates us so deeply.
Case 2：： The Development of Oxaliplatin

I am a patient with sigmoid colon cancer that has metastasized to the liver. Having undergone
two major surgeries and 32 rounds of targeted therapy and chemotherapy， I have a deep personal

understanding of chemotherapy—it is both infamous for its harm and cherished as a life-saving tool.
The term "chemotherapy" was first coined by the famous German chemist Paul Ehrlich （1854 –

1915） at the beginning of the 20th century. However， at that time， it did not refer specifically to

cancer treatment but rather to the process of using chemical substances to treat diseases. Ehrlich，

knowing how difficult it was to develop anticancer drugs， did not have high hopes. In fact， a sign on
his lab door read， "Give up all hope， oh ye who enter." Throughout the first half of the 20th century，

no chemical cures for cancer had been discovered， though nitrogen mustard had emerged as a

treatment.
In 1958， Chinese-AmericanoncologistMin Chiu Li made significant progress at the U. S.

National Cancer Institute （NCI） using methotrexate to treat a rare type of choriocarcinoma， marking

the first success in using chemotherapy to not only alleviate but cure a malignant tumor. Li's work
earned him the 1972 Lasker Clinical Medical Research Award， making him the first Chinese

scientist to receive this honor. Following this breakthrough， chemotherapy for cancer progressed

rapidly， with the development of platinum-based drugs standing as a milestone.
In 1963， American biophysicist Barnett Rosenberg of Michigan State University， while

studying the effects of electric fields on E. coli cell division， discovered that when platinum—a

chemically inert metal—was placed in an ammonium chloride solution， it caused the bacteria's
chromosomes to align in a spindle-like pattern， much like the magnetic field lines between the poles

of a magnet. Initially， he thought this was related to the electric field， but contrary to expectations，