On the Difficulty of Defining Disease: A Darwinian Perspective

Medicine, Health Care and Philosophy: A European Journal 4 (1):37-46 (2001)
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Abstract

An evolutionary view of the origins of the body and its vulnerabilities that result in disease provides an objective foundation for recognizing pathology. Our social definition of disease will remain contentious, however, because values vary, and because the label "disease" changes judgments about the moral status of people with various conditions, and their rights to medical and social resources.

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