An important aspect of the medical model is that it regards signs (objective indicators such as an elevated temperature) and symptoms (subjective feelings of distress expressed by the patient) as indicative of an underlying physical abnormality (pathology) within the individual. According to the medical model, medical treatment, wherever possible, should be directed at the underlying pathology in an attempt to correct the abnormality and cure the disease. In regard to many mental illnesses, for example, the assumption is that the cause of the disorder lies in abnormalities within the affected individual’s brain (specially their brain neurochemistry).