Cowpox in a sentence as a noun

How to use cowpox as a vaccine for smallpox.

Given that those who were exposed to cowpox survive smallpox, the advantage conferred would have been huge.

Sure it can - think of smallpox: the first smallpox "vaccine" was actually inoculation with cowpox - a similar, but less virulent virus.

True but cowpox vs smallpox is a trivial counterexample but it certainly isn't complete protection given the many strands of the common cold and flu.

"Anecdote is not data" but it was anecdotes about people getting cowpox not getting smallpox that led to the development of immunization.

Cowpox definitions

noun

a viral disease of cattle causing a mild skin disease affecting the udder; formerly used to inoculate humans against smallpox

See also: vaccinia