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142 CHAPTER 7
7.6 Summary
A wide variety of incidence and acceleration curves can be drawn
based on reasonable assumptions about progression and heterogeneity.
That great flexibility of the theory means that it is easy to fit a model to
observations. A theory that fits almost any observable pattern explains
little; insights and testing of ideas cannot come from simply fitting the
theory to observations.
The value of the theory arises from comparative hypotheses. The
models predict how incidence and acceleration change between groups
with different genotypes or different exposures to carcinogens. If one
can consistently predict how perturbations to certain processes shift
incidence and acceleration, then one has moved closer to understand-
ing the processes of carcinogenesis. The following chapters describe
comparative studies.
