I want to point out that the ignorance does apply to other conditions. My step son is 42 and has had type 1 diabetes (juvenile onset) since he was 9. He works out and eats carefully, aside from the occasional junk food which he has to pay for by taking more insulin, and even though there's hardly an ounce of fat on his body people are constantly thinking that his lifestyle somehow caused his diabetes. He gets very upset about that. It's type 2 diabetes that is associated with lifestyle. No one knows the exact cause of type 1. But then of course people assume that my lifestyle caused my cancer, and maybe that's true, though I quit smoking 22 years ago and have been a light drinker for quite a few years. I can't remember the last time I was actually drunk but it's been years. But if you have one of these diseases, why, you just must have done something to bring it upon yourself, right?


David R. 65 yr old male non-smoker, light drinker, stage 3 or 4, depending on which doc you ask, scc rt. tonsil, 2 nodes, 7 weeks radiation and chemo. No surgery. Teatment ended 3/20/08. PET scan 8/08 showed no cancer.
And now, as of oct, 2010, caregiver to wife, Linda, with breast cancer.
May, 2013, Linda diagnosed with stage 3 ovarian cancer. Enuf already.