History Main / Panacea

The distinction between a HealingPotion a panacea is that the former is geared towards fixing physical injuries and the latter to invisible and silent ailments. Nevertheless, there is overlap and many cases of one will work as the other.

Compare HealingSpring, ImmortalityInducer, PhilosophersStone, SpiceRackPanacea (an advertising trope).

* ''Manga/DragonBall'': Senzu Beans are this. Eating a single one will almost instantly restore someone to perfect health and maximum stamina, from healing cuts to mending broken bones to regenerating lost body parts. But the beans are very slow to grow, and they can't heal sickness, disease, healed-over wounds, or death.

** ''[[Manga/JojosBizarreAdventureJojolion JoJolion]]'' has a much darker version of the Panacea in the form of the Locacaca, a mystical fruit capable of healing pretty much anything... but also turns another part of the body to stone, and while it seems to work on the basis of EquivalentExchange it has an odd sense of priority, such as healing minor injuries by turning brain tissue to stone. A concentrated, experimental liquid version called Locacaca 6251 seems to be more potent and has less adverse side-effects, petrifying patches of skin rather than entire limbs, but the risk is still there, and the creation and distribution of the drug itself is controlled by a secret organization made up of [[AlwaysChaoticEvil Rock Humans]].

* ''Manga/DrStone'': The process of un-petrifying an individual can heal terminal injuries they had prior to petrifaction, including a broken neck in the case of Senku and being full-on brain death in the case of Tsukasa's little sister Mirai.

This is not the same as a HealingPotion, though there is a lot of overlap, especially since both are most often liquids. The distinction is that the HealingPotion is geared towards fixing physical injuries rather than invisible and silent ailments. Nevertheless, many cases of one will work as the other, though this is not always so.

[[folder:Web Comics]]

[[folder:Web Original]]
* In ''WebOriginal/{{Mortasheen}}'', the Streptile is a reptile-like artificial organism whose body is intensely hostile to all microorganisms, and can even spray a "medicine breath", a cloud of phagocytes which immediately wipes out even the most virulent germs on contact. However, this also includes beneficial symbionts like gut bacteria, so being cleansed by the Streptile is basically just as detrimental to one's health as having an illness, if not more so.

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* From the ''Website/RPCAuthority'' [[https://rpcauthority.wikidot.com/rpc-588 RPC-588]] are seemingly normal bees whose stings contain a chemical (designated RPC-588-A) that can cure any disease or mental illness, althougn not physical injuries.
* ''Website/SCPFoundation'':
** The [[https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/scp-500 SCP-500]] pills that cure any disease, but there's just about fifty of them and they're impossible to replicate perfectly (though knockoffs ''can'' work if you're lucky).
** Later, [[https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/scp-427 SCP-427: the Lovecraftian Locket]] was developed that has eclipsed it in use. It has its own problems like overexposure, though.
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* Some versions of the Holy Grail myth had it that the Grail could cure anything, grant immortality, etc. This idea was relished by treasure-seekers for whom a relic of unrivaled holiness just wasn't good enough. The same kind of powers have been attributed to any number of other Christian relics.

* In ''Literature/BridgeOfBirds'', when the children of Number Ten Ox's village fall deathly ill from chewing poisoned leaves, Ten Ox and the sage Li Kao go on a quest to find a powerful ginseng root that can cure any disease. Unfortunately, said ginseng root has been broken up into pieces and stored in the extremely well-hidden and guarded treasure vaults of the villainous Duke of Ch'in, and only the ''entire'' root will be enough to cure the children.

* In ''Videogame/PokemonScarletAndViolet'', the "Path of Legends" storyline involves helping Arven find herbs known as "Herba Mystica" stated to have amazing healing properties so that he can use them to heal his dying [[BigFriendlyDog Mabosstiff]]. Aside from that, the sandwiches that Arven makes with said Herba Mystica are capable of empowering Koraidon/Miraidon by unlocking more mobility options such as being able to swim, glide or climb. Unfortunately, they're also guarded by "Titan Pokemon", who are massive beasts thanks to said herbs.

* ''Literature/{{Belgariad}}'': When asked by Adara to magically make a [[FillItWithFlowers rosebush bloom]], Garion refuses because it'd hurt the plant and instead creates a new flower from some twigs. It becomes known a small, lop-sided and unimpressive species called Adara's Rose until ''The Malloreon'' reveals it to be a sovereign specific -- capable of curing any poison, even one like thalot, which has no known antidote and resists magical intervention. Polgara had previously investigated the flower for any sign of usefulness but found nothing; it turns out that the fragrance has to be inhaled for it to work, something she didn't realise was possible until advised by Sadi and Cyradis. While Belgarath is transforming Zakath's bedroom to fill it with blooms that will fend off the thalot poisoning, Garion observes that -- even in those who are fully fit and well like him -- the fragrance instantly makes him more relaxed, refreshed and revitalised than he's felt for months.

** A {{Good Bad Bug|s}} is that one of the cheapest and most reliable ways to cure a pet's disease is... poisoning their food. Any new disease they get will overwrite any that already had. That [[https://items.jellyneo.net/item/867/ lollipop]] you got as [[DealWithTheDevil a reward from Jhudora]] will give a pet Floppy Tongue, which the cure for is common and costs under 2000 Neopoints. That's good news for one suffering from, say, Ugga Ugga, the cure for which is more than ''forty times'' as expensive.

** The Healing Springs can restore a pet's lost HP and cure any diseases. However, it's a bit temperamental -- it can only be used once every 30 minutes, and it isn't guaranteed to have a full effect.
** Cooling Ointment and Warm Amber Ointment are two rare items that stock in the Brightvale potion shop. Both can act as any other medicine item.

* The Grand Panacea from ''LightNovel/{{Baccano}}''. Its perfect form also [[ImmortalityInducer grants immunity to aging]].

* In ''Literature/TheElenium'', TheHighQueen has been administered a poison believed to have no remedy, and her champion must find an object of power to cure her. As it happens, none will suffice but the Bhelliom, a CosmicKeystone of practically unlimited power. Although the story initially serves up the Bhelliom as a cure to this specific predicament, it quickly becomes a greater MacGuffin by dint of the desire of the BigBad to possess it by any means.

* ''Literature/{{Belgariad}}'': When asked by Adara to magically make a [[FillItWithFlowers rosebush bloom]], Garion refuses because it'd hurt the plant and instead creates a new flower from some twigs. It becomes known a small, lop-sided and unimpressive species called Adara's Rose until ''The Malloreon'' reveals it to be a sovereign specific -- capable of curing any poison, even one like thalot, which has no known antidote and resists magical intervention. Polgara had previously investigated the flower for any sign of usefulness but found nothing; it turns out that the fragrance has to be inhaled for it to work, something she didn't realise was possible until advised by Sadi and Cyradis. While Belgarath is transforming Zakath's bedroom to fill it with blooms that will fend off the previously incurable thalot poisoning, Garion observes that -- even in those who are fully fit and well like him -- the fragrance instantly makes him more relaxed, refreshed and revitalised than he's felt for months.

* ''Literature/{{Belgariad}}'': When asked to make a [[FillItWithFlowers rosebush bloom]] with sorcery for his cousin, Garion refuses because it'd hurt the plant; he compromises by creating a new flower from some twigs. It becomes known a small, lop-sided and unimpressive flower called Adara's Rose until ''The Malloreon'', when it's revealed to be a sovereign specific -- capable of curing any poison, even one like thalot, which has no known antidote and resists magical intervention. Polgara had previously investigated the flower for any sign of usefulness but found nothing; it turns out that the fragrance has to be inhaled for it to work, something she didn't realise was possible until advised by Sadi and Cyradis. While Belgarath is transforming Zakath's bedroom to fill it with blooms that will fend off the previously incurable thalot poisoning, Garion observes that -- even in those who are fully fit and well like him -- the fragrance instantly makes him more relaxed, refreshed and revitalised than he's felt for months.