I was just rewatching the episode and paused at this bit of dialog (when Ben is promising to cure Rachael):

Ben: "You've been here for 6 months, you've done workups on all of us. Have you seen even a trace of cancer?"

Juliet: "That's here..."

The first thing we can pull out of this is that Juliet is acknowledging that on the island people don't have cancer (we've see evidence of that in Rose too). But what really jumped out at me is why Ben would even say that. It's as if this should be proof to Juliet that Ben (or Jacob or the island) can cure cancer. And it wouldn't be proof of anything unless those people actually had cancer at some point.

I realize this theory couldn't apply to all the Others... Juliet, for example, was recruited for her fertility research. And we know that Ethan and Richard can leave the island. So probably none of them have cancer. But I think Ben and maybe most of the Others are in remission. Well, Ben was in remission!

This might also explain the scene when Juliet tells Ben that he has a tumor. It's clearly a major moment for him and she tried avoid the C word with something like "I didn't say you have cancer, I said you have a tumor." I think this is the moment that Ben realizes something is going wrong with the island's healing powers in relation to him -- a point also made by Locke a few episodes again, with his wheelchair comments.

I don't think that's what they were trying to insinuate... I think they were just trying to insinuate that they don't get sick (unless your pregnant!) Other things have gotten healed as well. Locke walks...

Thats what I thought to, but then how did Ben get a tumor?

You can get a tumor that isn't cancerous. I thought the problem with Ben's tumor was its location (on the spine), not that it was necessarily cancerous? I could be totally wrong, but if anyone has dialogue supporting that Ben has cancer and not just a tumor, I stand corrected!

I used to have a theory stating that the reason the others stayed willingly on the island was because they were all sick like Rose and Locke. As soon as they leave the island they get sick again. Perhaps they were all cancer patients under a very special treatment that can only be done on the island. Perhaps they were trying to find the Panacea for Cancer (and perhaps other terminal diseases). Jacob may have learned how to channel the Island's 'energy or healing properties' even outside the Island. They may have succeeded in cure Cancer, but their infertility problem showed up as a side effect. Now they want to find a cure for that DESPERATELY or their society will not last long.
We could even take that idea even further: what if the others are really the 'good' guys and their project is to take this magical cure to the rest of the world on the big scale. Imagine that. The definite cure for Cancer! That would be one of the greatest achievements in Medicine. The only problem is that women treated with this 'serum' die before giving birth. That would be a very serious SIDE EFFECT. They need to perfect that before going full scale.
What I don't understand is why Rachel seemed to have been cured and given birth off the island...:confused:

I was just rewatching the episode and paused at this bit of dialog (when Ben is promising to cure Rachael):

Ben: "You've been here for 6 months, you've done workups on all of us. Have you seen even a trace of cancer?"

Juliet: "That's here..."

The first thing we can pull out of this is that Juliet is acknowledging that on the island people don't have cancer (we've see evidence of that in Rose too). But what really jumped out at me is why Ben would even say that. It's as if this should be proof to Juliet that Ben (or Jacob or the island) can cure cancer. And it wouldn't be proof of anything unless those people actually had cancer at some point.

I realize this theory couldn't apply to all the Others... Juliet, for example, was recruited for her fertility research. And we know that Ethan and Richard can leave the island. So probably none of them have cancer. But I think Ben and maybe most of the Others are in remission. Well, Ben was in remission!

This might also explain the scene when Juliet tells Ben that he has a tumor. It's clearly a major moment for him and she tried avoid the C word with something like "I didn't say you have cancer, I said you have a tumor." I think this is the moment that Ben realizes something is going wrong with the island's healing powers in relation to him -- a point also made by Locke a few episodes again, with his wheelchair comments.

I completely agree. Ever since we first saw Juliet's book club meeting, I've been trying to piece together what those people had in common (aside from reading). They didn't strike me as medical professionals; just a bunch of middle-aged to elderly people. So, maybe they're the patients?

I really think the book club folk were all diagnosed with terminal cancer and were offered a way to extend their lives in several ways, including the complete remission of cancer. At what personal and financial cost? Who knows.

Just like any medical facility, you have doctors, patients and administrators....all of which combine for form...The Others.

What I noticed was that the description of the pregnant women's bodies to their fetuses made it sound an awful like the body treating it like a tumor. So people don't get cancer on the island, maybe the same thing allowing them to stay cancer free for some reason also considers a growing fetus a cancer? I dunno.

fierro, that's a really interesting theory.
i'm wondering if rachel and her son have side effects that have yet to manifest themselves, and that's why ben can't have juliet leave yet. either they are going to die, or he needs her to help perfect whatever it is she's developed.

do we know for sure that rachel had terminal cancer? we know that she was infertile, but maybe she just had cancer and went into remission and survived. it's certainly possible, and juliet, as any good sister, would just want her sister's cancer CURED even if it was technically in remission.

just some random thoughts, sorry for the rambling!

People develop benign tumors all of the time. The problem is that Ben's tumor was pushing on the spinal cord and causing compression. Continued growth would have paralyzed him. Ben never had cancer. But he was really freaked out at the prospect. I like the idea of some fo the others being patients.

Thats what I thought to, but then how did Ben get a tumor?

Ben's tumor is why he's so interested in Locke. Ben lived his whole life on this magical healing island where you apparently can't get cancer (and you can be healed of other things too). But then he gets this tumor, and he ends up unable to walk after the surgery (no magical island healing). And so he's looking to find answers in Locke, who received this amazing cure the moment he arrived on the island.

It seems that Ben realizes the island's healing powers are no longer working for him and he doesn't know why. Locke suggested that it's because Ben is "cheating" -- indoor plumbing, electricity, refrigerated chicken, etc. -- the Others are no longer living "with" the island, they're mererly living on it and taking it for granted.



What I don't understand is why Rachel seemed to have been cured and given birth off the island...:confused:

Juliet did ask Ben about that. When he said he could cure Rachel, Juliet basically asked "how, she's not here on the island?" And that's when Ben said he would get Jacob to do it, which implies that Jacob has the ability to heal people not on the island. Whether or not that's true, we don't know, but I tend to think Rachel wasn't healed at all. I think her cancer never actually came back. Ben showed Juliet a fake medical report and then took credit for curing her.


What I noticed was that the description of the pregnant women's bodies to their fetuses made it sound an awful like the body treating it like a tumor. So people don't get cancer on the island, maybe the same thing allowing them to stay cancer free for some reason also considers a growing fetus a cancer? I dunno.

Yeah, it really did sound like their bodies were treating fetuses like cancers. We still don't know why the mothers were dying, but it must have something to do with that. I thought Juliet explained that the mother's body would turn on the fetus and attack it like it was a foreign body. But you'd think that would kill the fetus, not the mother.
100%
People develop benign tumors all of the time. The problem is that Ben's tumor was pushing on the spinal cord and causing compression. Continued growth would have paralyzed him. Ben never had cancer. But he was really freaked out at the prospect. I like the idea of some fo the others being patients.

Did we ever actually find out if the tumor was benign or not? I seem to recall Jack telling Juliet or someone that they should biopsy the tumor, but I don't remember ever hearing the results.

What I don't understand is why Rachel seemed to have been cured and given birth off the island...:confused:
Maybe the medical file on Rachel that Ben gave Juliet was fake: her cancer never really returned. It was just a scam to get Juliet to stay.

Can't it be that the island's radiation is what's curing the cancer. One post said something about radiation in a fetus causing cancer? Does this happen and then the mother's body responds as if it's cancer?

If in fact Ben's tumor was cancer (I don't recall), then I could understand his confusion. I'm confused about the timeline though. Did not entering the numbers somehow affect the island's ability to cure? Did Desmond fail to enter the numbers which caused 815 to crash and that is the same time tumor appeared? I don't know if it was same day or next? Could his inability to walk be part of this as well when Locke didn't enter the numbers? Somehow impacting the radiation?

Can't it be that the island's radiation is what's curing the cancer. One post said something about radiation in a fetus causing cancer? Does this happen and then the mother's body responds as if it's cancer?

If in fact Ben's tumor was cancer (I don't recall), then I could understand his confusion. I'm confused about the timeline though. Did not entering the numbers somehow affect the island's ability to cure? Did Desmond fail to enter the numbers which caused 815 to crash and that is the same time tumor appeared? I don't know if it was same day or next? Could his inability to walk be part of this as well when Locke didn't enter the numbers? Somehow impacting the radiation?

Juliet told Ben he had a tumor the day before 815 crashed. So Desmond not entering the numbers wouldn't have anything to do with Ben's tumor. Also, Juliet x-rayed Ben because he'd been having back pain, so the tumor had been growing for some period of time prior to that anyway.

I think the tumor was benign but that the Others are victims of a new type of virulent cancer (like the radiation emanates from a weird gene in their DNA (and maybe it's even a byproduct of a hideous DHarma experiment) and that it's kind of like a leper colony. Ben's parents were the first either patients or researchers and were the last to be able to give birth - the treatments for the cancer and'or the effects ofthe island cause problems in pregnancy and Juliet was brought here for that - after her sister was given the cancer and kept in a controlled environment. Juliet was able to get her pregnant and the Other's interest was piqued - if the people who can't leave the island could be treated, thie could become an actual science station and a place to pioneer biological advancement, without the pesly cancer problem.