Comments on: The War on Cancer Phobia

By: Candida Abrahamson

Candida Abrahamson — Thu, 23 Feb 2012 17:50:52 +0000

This piece is utterly fascinating, and I’m thrilled to just come across it, as I recently published an post, backed by research, on cancer as the most feared illness in our society (come check it out at http://wp.me/p22afJ-CV to affirm the degree of cancer-phobia permeating our world). I’m about to go back to it and link to your article, to hopefully help people get more of a grip on the realities of cancer, and why it might be safe to feel less afraid. I believe your article can do much to soothe the masses. Thanks for your well-researched input. Candida

By: Michelle

Michelle — Sat, 14 Jan 2012 02:38:54 +0000

When I was diagnosed with cancer, my doctor started to cry! It was awful, having to comfort him! Now I’m at 18 years cancer-free with a relatively short treatment period, and I do have to say my doctor over-reacted. I’ve also had a small basal-cell carcinoma and numerous other “scares” which turned out to be nothing. I sometimes wonder if the scare is meant to make you pay for more diagnostic procedures. Your whole body is pre-cancerous, since that means before cancer!!!! If someone tells me something is pre-cancerous, I don’t panic.

By: Gordon Burgett

Gordon Burgett — Thu, 12 Jan 2012 23:56:31 +0000

How timely. I’ve got a PSA of 20+ (for the last three tests) so I’m headed off for a biopsy in a week. Naturally apprehensive. But the urologist, a funny lad from Yale, said that at 73 I had a chance of cancer of about 40%–and with a 20+ it was 50%. He said not to worry if I can live with the 10% difference for a few weeks. I’m not sure what he would have said or done if I said that I couldn’t live with it. The last couple of days I’ve had a flu-like headache so I naturally thought I’d die before the biopsy and it had come to do me in. But I feel fine today, not dead yet, and I’ll live to get rectally probed and snipped. So the article and study was right on target. (He also said my prostate was as big as he’d ever felt and he was surprised it wasn’t popping out I was sitting on it half the time. Oh well…

By: Jen

Jen — Thu, 12 Jan 2012 12:42:04 +0000

It is estimated over half a million people died from cancer in 2011 alone and 1.6 million people recieved the diagnosis. While yes there are 12 million survivors the odds of their cancer coming back is a reality. Surviving it doesn’t just end there. The treatments themselves can be deadly. If you do survive it your body is never the same and not just the part where the tumor was or just the scaring. The treatments affect so many different organs and bodily functions and at times put you at risk for developing another type of cancer altogether- ie breast cancer patients/survivors receive radiation to their chests this puts them at risk for developing lung cancer. In my opinion awareness, research and early detection needs much more attention. People should be fearful of the disease but hopeful that if diagnosed they will survive because of people like myself and so many others dedicated to advocating for these things. The reason survival rates increase is because of advocacy and awareness which drives research funding and early detection methods. I watched lung cancer and it’s treatments physically destroy my young father in a matter of months. This form of cancer is the number one cancer killer and receives the least. That’s pretty scary.

By: Bonnie

Bonnie — Thu, 12 Jan 2012 01:10:15 +0000

I had cervical cancer years ago ad what I remember most clearly is the oncologist’s greeting to me upon our first meeting”This is a tragedy”. Up to that point I had not been that frightened.

By: AG

AG — Wed, 11 Jan 2012 21:44:25 +0000

But fear is greatest motivator. The funding for cancer research needs that.