What Causes Cancer: Probably Not You

saluki

I'm a big fan of the Huffington Post. I assumed someone would have spotted this earlier so I did'nt post it a few weeks ago.

I thought it was a very good article.
Here is also the link, in case you want to read the comments.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/barbara-ehrenreich/what-causes-cancer-proba_b_56983.html
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Barbara Ehrenreich

What Causes Cancer: Probably Not You

Posted July 19, 2007 | 03:52 PM (EST)

What Causes Cancer: Probably Not You reddit: What Causes Cancer: Probably Not You

The perennial temptation to blame disease on sin or at least some grave moral failing just took another hit. A major new study shows that women on a virtuous low fat diet with an extraordinary abundance of fruits and veggies were no less likely to die of breast cancer than women who grazed more freely. Media around the world have picked up on the finding, cautioning, prudishly, that you can't beat breast cancer with cheeseburgers and beer.


Another "null result" in cancer studies -- i.e., one showing that a suspected correlation isn't there -- has received a lot less attention. In the May issue of Psychological Bulletin, James Coyne and his colleagues at the University of Pennsylvania reported that "there is no compelling evidence linking psychotherapy or support groups with survival among cancer patients." This flies in the face of the received wisdom that any sufficiently sunny-tempered person can beat cancer simply with a "positive attitude." For example, an e-zine article entitled "Breast Cancer Prevention Tips" advises:

A simple positive and optimistic attitude has been shown to reduce the risk of cancer. This will sound amazing to many people; however, it will suffice to explain that several medical studies have demonstrated the link between a positive attitude and an improved immune system. Laughter and humor has [sic] been shown to enhance the body's immunity and prevents against cancer and other diseases. You must have heard the slogan 'happy people don't fall sick'.

So far no one appears to have read Coyne's study. On June 30, a month after its publication, all-purpose guru Deepak Chopra assured Sanjay Gupta on CNN that the mind can control the body: "...You know, of course, the ... study where women who supported each other in a loving environment with breast cancer the survival doubled." Gupta, last sighted seeking to discredit Michael Moore's SiCKO with his "fact-checking," simply nodded, although the study Chopra was referring to was discredited years before Coyne's research came out.

For the last decade or so, adherents of the new discipline of "positive psychology" have been insisting that not just cancer, but almost any health setback, can be conquered with optimism or a "positive attitude." But as Coyne and other critics point out, the science here is shaky at best. Even the theoretical linch-pin of the supposed happy-mind-healthy-body connection -- that a positive outlook strengthens the immune system -- took a kick in the teeth two years ago when Suzanne Segerstrom at the University of Kentucky found, to her own apparent surprise, that optimism can have a negative effect on the immune system when the stressors are intense, as in the case of serious disease.

Even if veggies and smiles don't cure cancer, aren't we still entitled to blame some people for their diseases? Lack of exercise and dietary indiscretions play a role in the development of diabetes and coronary heart disease, so we indulge in self-gratifying contempt for the fat lady scarfing down Doritos. But before you rush to judgment, ask yourself: What nutritional alternatives does she have? (And, yes, I know they have "salad" at Wendy's now, but they don't offer apples on Amtrak.) As for exercise, gym memberships easily cost $500 a year, and far too many of us are forced to spend 10 hours or more a day sitting in a cubicle, a car or a bus.

In the case of breast cancer, one victim-blaming theory after has wilted under scrutiny: The "cancer personality" theory, for example, which breast cancer victim Susan Sontag took on in her 1978 book Illness as Metaphor, and now high-fat diets and negative attitudes. Something other than genetics causes it, though, and one leading candidate is the Hormone Replacement Therapy that doctors pushed on menopausal women for decades as a supposed way of preventing heart disease, Alzheimer's and wrinkles. When, in 2002, HRT was found to be correlated with breast cancer and millions of women stopped taking it, the incidence of breast cancer plunged.

Which suggests that optimism, especially about the validity of the conventional wisdom, can be hazardous. What you need is a narrow-eyed, deeply skeptical attitude.

sushanna1

Thanks. I am a Barbara Ehrenreich fan and am delighted that she has taken on the myth that optimistic people are less likely to die of breast cancer (or any other disease.) My pet peeve while undergoing treatment was the well-meaning friends who lectured me about or commented upon my positive attitude. When I tried to tell them that there was no scientific connection between optimism and prognosis, I suddenly had a negative attitude and was jeopardizing my health. Thank you Barbara Ehrenreich.

Anonymous

You've heard the quote, "Bad things happen to good people," or "Why do bad things happen to good people?"

Our lives are like a roller coaster -- ups and downs, hills and valleys. Don't we wish we knew the answers. Even eating all the cruciferous veggies isn't going to stop cancer. Studies are constantly contradicting themselves. However, eating healthy, being in good spirits, exercising, etc., is not a bad thing to do for many reasons. And who knows, perhaps, just perhaps, it will help a few from getting this dreadful disease. (See, I'm condradicting myself ) The Lord knows I need to do better in those areas.
Shirley

iodine

While waiting to see my bs I talked with a lady that had the ans for all these cancers!! Dishwaser detergent! She knows of so many people who are very old who don't have dishwashers so it must be the detergent we have all been using,
Back to the topic;
I am so thankful that this article is written and we can finally put to rest the old saw about " you must be positive to get better". I agree that feeling positive makes the time you have better, maybe not longer, just better.

ravdeb

I love the last line. I am so skeptical of what the doctors say that I question their every move. I now know that they are human and they make mistakes and we need to be on top of the research and bring up ideas for extending our lives. It has nothing to do with positive thinking. It has everything to do with being our own advocates and being educated about treatments, side effects, etc.

Like Dotti said, positive attitude will help you get through life on earth in a better way, but it will not extend it.

Diana_B

Whenever anyone said anything to me about being positive (annoying me greatly) I would say "I'm positive towards ALL my emotions, whatever they are". That usually shut them up.

I have a fantastic book on the subject I'd like to recommend. It's called "The Whole Truth: The Myth of Alternative Health" by Rosalind Coward.

A review on the back: "Probably the first book which challenges these myths of the wholesome, the good and the natural...she "excavates" the deep roots of modern beliefs, regarding them as symptoms of how individuals see society and themselves." She talks about things such as the "Consciousness Industries" and the "Fantasy of the Whole Person".

I loved it and found it a relief to read, what with all the blame going around, subtly and not so subtly.

Jorf

amen.

Does anyone remember back around 20 years ago when they thought that the cure for cancer was to figure out what emotional process caused it and then to change your life? I think it was reverse engineering - that they saw people change their lives after cancer and decided that it was the before - the too much stress, too little stress, too much anger, too little anger, not enough sex, too much sex, ad infinitum - that caused the problem.

My mother (who was never good at saying the right thing) had been to one of these guru's talks back then (Simonton or someone I think) and, when I was diagnosed, sent me her notes. I was furious. I did not cause this. I've made some mistakes in my life and I'm not perfect. But I did not cause this.

That said, I'm convinced (;) that my unwavering determination to "come through this better than I started out" during treatment did pull me though optimally with minimal (ugh, if that was minimal...) chemo SE's. Tho I made a complete hash of all of my close personal relationships during that time....

I'll shut up now.

abbadoodles

Here's another good resource for you. They post summaries of most of the latest studies.

http://www.silentspring.org/

At this writing, environmental pollutants (and I would add that what is in the food you eat, including some additives, are environmental pollutants) are looking more and more suspicious, but for some reasons there has been little study done. Now, why is that???

Tina

threadbear

Gosh, I'm not sure what to think. I truly believed that being positive would (and did) get me through chemo. I was told on a Thursday that I would have to start chemo the follwing Monday, so I had no time to become a well informed advocate. I have learned a lot since then, and now feel relatively well informed, but I felt tremendous guilt, as well, especially last month when I met my new PCP. I guess it's time to let go of that!

gmarie

Everyone has a right to their feelings without getting blamed for predisposing themselves to disease. That said, don't you think it is more pleasant to be around people who are trying to be cheerful? I know some extremely grumpy negative people who are healthy and quite old. Can't say I want to associate with them, but they live on! I've tried to avoid putting too much credence into guilt-producing-hindsight-minded advice. In other words, I wish people (expert and lay) would stop trying to use correlations as if they proved cause and effect.
My best to all my BC sisters,
G Marie
Tbear: are you a quilter? I've been one for years but I'm dormant (too painful!).

Fitztwins

I am sure that our environment is affecting the rise in ALL cancer dx, not just BC. Also that we are living longer and not dying of other stuff (infections,flu,eaten by wild animals etc..)

Guess what? Cancer as been around FOREVER. They have found mummies with mast! Can you believe that?

Now on the 'self-help' through emotional healing to help fight cancer? or my stress or negative thoughts gave me cancer...I can't stand that crap..I had two people send me CDs...I whipped them across the room one day when I was really feeling like crap going through chemo!

I think we can work on our environment, limit what we use in our households, but the damage has been done. Maybe we can help the next generation.

Future generations will probably be battling increases skin cancer due to the ozone layer being diminished!

OY, it gets too much for me sometimes.

I think that breasts are wonderful things. They provide for our children. Like other key organs in our bodies (lung,liver,colon) they are key targets for cellular change. That is why cancer grows there. And why other cancers are not as common.

just my opinion.

Janis

Janis

Member_of_the_Club

This is my beef with teh alternative medicine thing, the way they find fault within the person. i went to an acupuncturist during chemo who told me I had to find out what stress in my life gave me my cancer. I felt like telling her that kind of thinking was going to give me another tumor.

rumoret

I had two of the crumpiest old people in their late 80's that lived behind me and torchered us for 10 years. They retired from a farm and moved into town....yet he wanted to continue to farm his backyard. I could careless....but the man would not let my husband, myself...or our children have one peaceful moment in our own backyard. He would call my husband a WOP (he's Italian) as he sat in his house behind the window. He would throw vegetables at my children and one day I came home to my whole patio having a salad on it.....I'm laughing now. But.....back then the couple was so busy torchering all of their neighbors that one actually moved away. Finally, I talked to a neighbor of theirs who grew up with their daughter in the country. They were so upset when they moved across the street from them. She stated that the man has been angry all of his life. Today they have passed on.......but they both lived a long life.............even though...........he was one pissed off old man!

Terry

Anonymous

Terry, I've got a mother like the old people you are referring to. She's 91 and living in a nursing home in San Antonio. She's quite lonely. My brother is basically the only person who sees about her. Sad.
Shirley

Fireweed

Thanks! Be sure to read "Welcome to cancerland" on Barbara's blog.

Shirlann

Well, they have found breast cancer, as well as many other cancers, in Egyptian mummies. So it sure isn't the dish detergent!

As to a positive attitude. That's great, and it is known that being down does somewhat effect your immune system. BUT, it is bad enough to have a life-threatening illness without making the person feel guilty too. This is outrageous, and even if it were true, which I do not believe it is, it is a cruel thing to say or think.

It really makes me mad that along with the grief, fear, panic, loneliness, etc., etc., of any long term life-threatening medical problem, some jack-ass wants to add "it was your own fault" to this, I just refuse to accept that.

We have enough on our plates, guilt we do not need, and I for one, refuse to accept that.

Gentle hugs, Shirlann

threadbear

Well, I'm still glad I have an upbeat attitude most of the time. Docs and other medical people treat me kindly, even though during treatment it took ALL my energy to be that way! One reason I haven't joined a traditional support group is the negative people. I don't want to waste whatever time I have left feeling like I'm just waiting to get it again, although I do have days like that occassionally.

G Marie- I sure am a quilter, But I had to give up hand quilting because of pain and numbness in my hands (pre-cancer). I got a Bernina 440 to quilt with, and what a dream she is! I just finished a quilt for my daughter's graduation from college, and I'm having a blast!

Laura

Valsul

Hey, I'm still beating myself up for spending my time reading instead of exercising all these years, because not exercising caused my cancer, so they tell me. Then they said that it was my intake of alcohol - I'm teetotal! - and then all the fatty meat I ate - not quite vegetarian, but did do Atkins for a time, but never ate fatty meat - ugh!

Whatever! It has to be my own fault. I'm such a silly girl to go getting this thing.

Pass me another Mars bar.

KariLynn

You know what, I ate fatty foods, didn't exercise enough, was overweight and have the same BC some of the super-fit, twig-eaters got.

I still vote strange combination and alignment of the stars. But I am working on the exercise and weight thing, just not going crazy about it.

Valsul

Hi Kari,

I have joined WW but my onc informs me that they are pumping me with so much saline these days with Herceptin every 3 weeks and a saline flush every week to keep my PICC line clear that it is almost impossible to lose weight. So when the leader tells me I haven't lost any pounds again I'm cool about that because I am not putting it on. I am eating a little healthier, but like you, I'm relaxed about it.

Big hugs

Shirlann

I'm with you, anyone who even DARES to suggest that this whole fiasco was my fault gets a very large, ugly black eye!

Hugs, Shirlann

Jorf

I looked for the essay on Barbara Ehrenreich of welcome to cancer land but couldn't find it - I didn't see any search tool, tho I guess I could google it. If you have the link can you post it?

Thanks, J

ravdeb

I have a friend who is a psychologist and she came to visit me at the very beginning of my bc journey to tell me that it is NOT MY FAULT! I do think my inlaws think it's my fault but I really don't care... I know it's not.

I will say this...I was very sick on AC and hospitalized as some of you know. So, I had a break between AC and Taxol. I had just been released from the hospital and my onc had told me to come in that Sunday and she'd look at my blood tests, etc and decide if I was ready for Taxol. I was a mess at the time. I could hardly walk as I had severe rheumatoid arthritis from this illness. I walked into her office and she looked me in the eye and told me she couldn't give me the Taxol that day because I looked bad and she didn't think I was physically or emotionally ready for it. I really was a mess after a month long stay in the hospital. She then told me that I had til Thursday to "shape up". She said it wasn't a threat but fact because she said she couldn't wait any longer than that. She knew I really wanted my Taxol and had fought for it even when I was very sick. Well, I went home and did some work on myself. Not sure what I did but when I walked in on Thursday she said she couldn't believe the change in me and wanted to know the magic potion. I told her it was my determination to get my Taxol. She said whatever it was it worked and I got it.

So..positive attitude can help in some ways but it will not prevent cancer..

saluki

Quote:

---

I looked for the essay on Barbara Ehrenreich of welcome to cancer land but couldn't find it - I didn't see any search tool, tho I guess I could google it. If you have the link can you post it?

Thanks, J

---

Here it is.
http://www.barbaraehrenreich.com/cancerland.htm

Anonymous

Ravedeb, what an inspirational story. Yes, positive thinking can help and positive people in our lives can help through treatment. I am soooo glad you "worked" on yourself and got well enough for that stupid Taxol. LOL
Shirley

GreenHeron

RavDeb,
I agree with you, that a positive outlook helps. On the continuum of impact with "causes cancer" at one end and "has no effect" at the other, I think that somewhere a positive outlooks, the ability to relax, the presence of emotional support, helps you through the journey in a big way...maybe less wear and tear, maybe just a better quality of journey. Whatever. But something very real.

: )

Flashdif

Catherine

Very interesting article. I hate those idiots that try to blame cancer on us. There is no way any of us should blame ourselves.

Obviously no one knows what causes cancer or they would have a cure by now.

When my grandmother was diagnosed a "friend" told her, "You can't have cancer; you are a good woman." What a moron!

Catherine

Jorf

thanks for the link.

you rock ravdeb

Sierra

Hi everyone:

Who knows?

I do believe that:

Prior to my DX, I had great stress
related to losing a job, was on HRT
AND did smoke, whilst I do not believe
this to be .. the ONLY cause, feel that
they contributed, along with Birth Control

Since BC, I have changed my coping
mechanisms big time, and stay clear of
toxic as much as possible, all this helps
greatly

Re: Pollutions, you betcha they are
culprits, big time, I just walk outside here
and can hardly breathe some days
big cars, and all the fumes UGGGG

Tina:

The Silent Spring, Rachel Carson
wonderful book, wonderful refuge, I have
been there in Wells area. PEACEFUL
I believe she died of B CA.. Tks for the link

Best to all

Where is the cure, though?

)