The above quote came from this blog post discussing the PACE trial which was a large-scale randomized controlled study comparing different treatment approaches for Chronic Fatigue Syndrome. I would not necessarily recommend reading the post since it can be hard to follow, and the comments suggest that in fact the study actually only provided evidence that the placebo effect holds...
But separate from all that, people tend to be uncomfortable with uncertainty. The setup of the study was supposedly to demonstrate which of different treatment options were effective. However, different people are likely to have varying responses to the same treatment. For something like CFS, it then makes sense to start your study with a question like "how can we identify the right treatment for each person" rather than "which treatment is right for everyone."
These questions come up a lot in the relatively new field of personalized medicine. While doctors have always used patient-specific information to make healthcare decisions, policy makers typically have not. Sometimes that makes sense: Eating more plants and getting more exercise are good for pretty much everyone. But we should not let our desire to have one right answer get in the way of understanding complex systems.
But separate from all that, people tend to be uncomfortable with uncertainty. The setup of the study was supposedly to demonstrate which of different treatment options were effective. However, different people are likely to have varying responses to the same treatment. For something like CFS, it then makes sense to start your study with a question like "how can we identify the right treatment for each person" rather than "which treatment is right for everyone."
These questions come up a lot in the relatively new field of personalized medicine. While doctors have always used patient-specific information to make healthcare decisions, policy makers typically have not. Sometimes that makes sense: Eating more plants and getting more exercise are good for pretty much everyone. But we should not let our desire to have one right answer get in the way of understanding complex systems.
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