After my recent post about Elizabeth Edwards and cancer (Edwards campaigning for cancer), cancer gets the cover of Newsweek. Isn’t that great? Great in the sense that at least the word about cancer gets spread, of course with some misleading statistics, yet Newsweek also needs to survive and not kick to many people in the butt nor cancer…
Thanks To Edwards running for president and Elizabeth Edwards recurring cancer : a useful national conversation about how people handle a cancer diagnosis is stimulated. It also exposes the foolishness of a few busybodies who don’t have cancer, but feel free to judge the complex choices made by those who do have cancer.
Cancer facts
The glass is half full. According to Newsweek there are 10.5 million cancer survivors in the United States.
That makes 5%.
The glass is half empty or 3/4th empty? From all the people with cancer I know, I can easily name 10 that died for 1 that survived.
In my fast calculation: that means 10 times 5% :
50% of the population in the United States has cancer?
It is a blessing in disguise that Elisabeth Edwards’ cancer gets Newsweek, as about 10.5 million other American cancer patients, didn’t manage to do so. And then we don’t speak about all those death cancer patients that never got on any cover…
Cancer and religion
It is hard to talk about God when he is taking your loved one out with a terrible disease like cancer. Yet Elisabeth Edwards reminds us:
God promises salvation, not protection.
- So when it comes to cancer protection, don’t ask God but ask humans.
- So when it comes to a cancer cure, don’t ask God but ask humans.
Cancer story
Alter from Newsweek summarizes the cancer stories:
- My cancer story isn’t typical, because none is.
- The only constant in cancer is inconstancy
- The only certainty of cancer is a future of uncertainty, made vivid by a life-threatening illness
Cure for Cancer
Also in the Newsweek cover package:
Lance Armstrong writing an essay about the fight for a cure for cancer:
I don’t understand why it requires two very upsetting announcements about cancer recurrence to prompt a national discussion about our nation’s second leading killer.
If 10.5 million cancer survivors don’t get in the news, and all the non cancer survivors die forgotten in the public arena, only treasured in the hearts of their loved ones, what doesn’t require a rocket scientist to tell you that the interest of this nation is not at all about looking for a cure for cancer.
Said in other words:
You have cancer? We don’t care and for sure we don’t cure… 
Death people cannot vote, so how to get politicians interested in a cure for cancer?
Cancer prevention
The shameful reality is that we do not ensure that everyone benefits from what we know today about cancer prevention and detection." Lance Armstrong writes: "We can prevent about one third of cancer deaths just by widely distributing information about prevention and early detection — but we aren’t doing it … We need an unapologetic effort to demand what is right and champion what works."
Technorati Tags: Cancer | Cancer prevention | Lance Armstrong | Senator John Edwards | Cure for cancer | Democrats | Elections | Politicians | Politics | Democracy | Ideas | Elisabeth Edwards | News | Newsweek
