He argues that a chemical called Sparc (secreted protein acidic and rich in cysteine) is the culprit, leading smoldering cancers to suddenly spread like wildfire.
Its apparent success also pointed to the reasoning behind some traditional hangover cures, such as raw egg and fry ups, eggs also being rich in cysteine.
They did, though, give a warm response to N-acetyl-cysteine - an amino acid supplement sold in health food stores, thought to work by increasing the body's ability to mop up destructive chemicals which build up in the liver as enzymes break down ethanol.