“We know who gets head and neck cancer”

That is a partial quote from this article. The full quote:

“We know who gets head and neck cancer — people who smoke and drink a lot and tend to be at an older age. The problem is that it’s sometimes difficult to diagnose until it’s at its late stages and difficult to treat and cure,” researcher Dr. Joseph Califano of the Johns Hopkins department of head and neck surgery said in a phone interview.”

I’d say it’s even more difficult to diagnose in people who don’t actually smoke, don’t drink a lot, and who are not of an older age. I’m all for things like this where a large number of people who potentially be aided, and all for making known the primary causes of this sort of cancer. But it also pisses me off a little bit: this is exactly the reason the first question I get from people is “Are you a smoker?” and the reason some of them look at me as if they don’t believe me when I tell them I am not and never was.

One thought on ““We know who gets head and neck cancer””

  1. I get so pissed off with the notion that “the way you live is the reason you have cancer (CA)”.

    I have ovarian CA. Yes, I’m 46 years old, and while not married, I have had sex. Did that cause my cancer? I smoked for years (am now 10 years smoke free), I drink (happily these days!)

    If I were a pioneer woman, living in pre-indusrial America, I doubt anyone would question “what did she do WRONG?” when I died an early death at 30.

    I’m all for managing my health through good lifestle habits, but PLEEZE – cut me some slack. Sometimes illness happens to those of us who don’t “deserve” it.

    Sorry… a bit of a vent. Hope you are continuing on your course of recovery.

    And keep blogging – I miss it so much when you don’t post!

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