the theranos case

G

globali

Registered Senior Member
I was shocked by recently watching a documentary about theranos and how easily people believe in hyped stories. Several people of power believed a story that was obviously flawed. For example, how can you measure a white blood cell count with a single blood droplet? The median value is 5000 white blood cells per ml (cubic centimeter). So in a droplet of blood (cubic millimeter) there are on average 5 white blood cells in a normal person. These cells are not equally distributed inside the blood, so there is a good chance in the collected droplet you can get zero, or 1, or 2 cells or more than 10, which will diagnose an abnormal white blood cell count.
I wonder whats your opinion about that.
 
globali said:
I was shocked by recently watching a documentary about theranos and how easily people believe in hyped stories. Several people of power believed a story that was obviously flawed. For example, how can you measure a white blood cell count with a single blood droplet? The median value is 5000 white blood cells per ml (cubic centimeter). So in a droplet of blood (cubic millimeter) there are on average 5 white blood cells in a normal person. These cells are not equally distributed inside the blood, so there is a good chance in the collected droplet you can get zero, or 1, or 2 cells or more than 10, which will diagnose an abnormal white blood cell count.
I wonder whats your opinion about that.
Click to expand...
It seems obvious something must be wrong here, as the medical profession are not all idiots.

Sure enough, on checking Wiki, I find the normal white blood cell count is 4-11 x 10⁹/litre, i.e. 4-11 x 10⁶ /ml, or 4-11 x 10³/mm³. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White_blood_cell

So your number is off by a factor of a thousand, basically.
 
Oops! you are right on that. My bad.
In any case the statistical error is way to high to allow the precise measurements that are needed in medicine. Apart from that, platelets start to aggregate and red blood cells or some sensitive chemical compounds start to be destroyed immediately when the blood comes out of the body and exposed to the environment or pass through tiny capillaries.
 
globali said:
I was shocked by recently watching a documentary about theranos and how easily people believe in hyped stories. Several people of power believed a story that was obviously flawed. For example, how can you measure a white blood cell count with a single blood droplet? The median value is 5000 white blood cells per ml (cubic centimeter). So in a droplet of blood (cubic millimeter) there are on average 5 white blood cells in a normal person. These cells are not equally distributed inside the blood, so there is a good chance in the collected droplet you can get zero, or 1, or 2 cells or more than 10, which will diagnose an abnormal white blood cell count.
I wonder whats your opinion about that.
Click to expand...

Bogus medical benefits with concepts of associated fact give massive leverage to scam people of their money.
it also panders to those who want to appease their egos by being "in the know" about things without having the intellectual/moral discipline or morality to research it themselves.

an easy assumed idea pays massive ego benefit to the inner greed.
it also fuels lust which drives its own sense of self appeasement via un-truths.


common conservation of intellectual ability always panders to greed as a process of self evaluation.
 
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