The Economic Principles of My Cancer Treatment: How to Use Medical Experiences to Teach Economics
This paper uses specific examples from my cancer treatment to illuminate multiple concepts that are typically covered in principles of economics classes. Economics is a method of thinking that reveals itself in all aspects of life and a good economics instructor should be able to see and adapt these economic concepts in even his or her most severe life experiences. The real events of my treatment serve to illustrate and further clarify basic economic concepts such as inelasticity, cost-benefit analysis, product bundling, how people respond to incentives, and marginal decision making. The more advanced concepts of a second-best world and the logic of the rational voter model are also explained using situations that arose during the treatment. These real-life incidences further clarify these ideas and provide effective examples that can be used in the classroom to bolster students’ confidence in the economic way of thinking.
