"The dose maketh the poison"  This quote from Paracelsus, the father of modern toxicology, first uttered more that five hundred years ago,  paraphrases a basic principle of modern toxicology. In order to establish that an injury was caused by a toxic substance, it is important not only to consider the toxicity of the substance, it is also necessary to consider the "dose" the toxic substance. During his time Paracelcus changed the focus of toxicology to external causes from internal characteristics of the bodily systems. It is now  becoming quite apparent that the the focus of toxicology should not only be on toxicity or dose.

It is possible for a dose as small as a molecule to be the precipitating cause of cancer. Moreover a dose measured in parts per billion can pose an significant toxic risk to an individual. The genome or proteome of an of the individual can be the the factor determining the toxicity of a given dose.  Modern science is coming to realize that dose response may not be quantifiable due to individual factors such as genetic predisposition and immunologic health. In addition, external factors associated a toxicant such as chemical interactions and synergistic activity make it difficult to define a dose-response of a toxic substance.

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