The case of Mr. Wright is a medical miracle documented in a scientific journal - he sent his terminal lymphoma into remission with a placebo - curing his cancer by the power of belief.

This famous story appears in textbooks, news articles, medical handbooks, every book about believing yourself cured - and even a play. It informs our understanding of the Placebo Effect, it affects the advice we give to cancer patients, and it is the foundation of legitimacy for an entire industry of mind-body healers.

Yet there's absolutely no reason to believe it ever happened.

But absence of evidence can't disprove a made-up story. So in this episode we go searching for evidence of absence, to debunk a famous medical myth that shapes the Placebo Effect, Mind-Body Healing, and the Power of Belief.


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*CORRECTION* The date on the yearbook at 15:05 was actually from 1935, not 25.

0:00 The Case of Mr. Wright
4:38 Krebiozen the Miracle Cure
8:05 The Krebiozen Conspiracy
11:31 The Origin of Mr. Wright
15:02 Dr. West
17:39 The Story Falls Apart
21: 02 Spontaneous Remission
22:52 The Power of Belief
25:46 The Danger of Lies
26:33 Outtro, Credits, Outtakes