Placebo: Its action and place in health research today* — Summary and conclusions

The material presented at this conference pointed to a new dimension in the prosecution of activities that seek to relieve people of disease. While the simple instrument of the placebo may show those interested in the efficacy of physiologically active chemicals the extent to which the chemical of interest is actually active, the surprising outcome of such studies is that the placebo per se is worthy of more general study. This, when taken further, points to the ways in which mind can influence the matter of the body. Of course, mind itself is an activity of matter, so we may retain the experimental approach that has told us about the world outside ourselves to examine the world that is inside our brains. New techniques and approaches to these once intractable problems are now in train. Where they will lead us we cannot predict, but as with the emergence of all new tools, we have to adopt those ethics that will carry us forward with the expectation that we will maximise benefits and minimise harms.