It was not uncommon practice in medicine just a short time ago to withhold particularly distressing information from patients about the seriousness of their conditions. This left misled patients confused about treatment and prospects of recovery. Concerned husbands were entrusted with medical information that professionals judged too distressing to tell their wives. Confused and scared patients were left at the mercy of medical professionals in an age where agency and consent were not priorities.

Fortunately, the prevailing wisdom in the medical community (and the law, for that matter) no longer endorses this approach. Not only are patients individuals with the right to make their own healthcare decisions, a realistic and sober-minded encounter with reality allows those with catastrophic diagnoses to face their futures with resolve. It turns out that a clear diagnosis allows for clear-headed treatment decisions.

Not only is this true for individual ills, it is also true for social ills. To eradicate a cancer from the human body or from the body politic, we must face the nature of the cancer, the prognosis, and the risks of ignoring it. For far too long, we’ve failed to face the reality of the scourge of antisemitism in the West.

Antisemitism Is a Cancer that Must Be Periodically Exorcised – Trey Dimsdale for Providence