to think people who think cancer is caused by lifestyle choices are ignorant?

Exactly

I'm obese and have endometrial cancer. Both were caused by the hormones I have had pumped into me since the age of 18 to 'manage' my PCOS.
I'm sure many people blame me for my cancer for being fat. But to hell with them

Why do you think things like smoking can’t be the sole cause of cancer, when surely it is more than possible that they are?

Agree. I think it's comforting to believe that 'if I do/don't do X. Y won't happen.'

My mother also has serious autoimmune problems and the number of people suggesting mindfulness 😐

That’s very interesting and anecdotally from my life I do see this happening.

I currently have cancer, actually just had my first round of chemo.

Never smoked, very rarely drink, I've put in a tonne of weight recently due to the type I have, but before that I was OK.

It makes people feel in control to say that it's totally caused by lifestyle, its the same type of person who reads about a tragic accident and says "I would never..... so that wouldn't happen to me". Some people can't cope with the idea that bad shit happens at random to all types of people and it could be any of us next.

I think some people are frightened by the idea that they can’t control everything. Not cancer, but I have an autoimmune issue that led to lung fibrosis and removal of part of one lung. I was walking up a hill to the shops with a colleague ( who knows this) and couldn’t talk at the same time. Can’t you join a gym or something, she said. She’s a clinical psychologist. I wonder if she thinks CBT can solve everything?

My DM (life-long non-smoker) died of lung cancer. I find myself adding “but she never smoked” any time I tell people just so she wouldn’t be judged.

My mum passed away from lung cancer and hadn’t even touched a cigarette in her life, let alone smoked one. But I’ve had some people comment to me in the past that “she wouldn’t have died young if she didn’t smoke”. Just very ignorant and extremely insensitive too.

Like you OP, I know several young people who’ve been diagnosed with cancer; usually breast cancer or brain. All of them had lived/still live healthy lifestyles. It’s very sad.

One tremendous victory however was a friend who was given a six month prognosis (if she was lucky) after being diagnosed with lung cancer. Again, not a smoker. She spent a year at a cancer clinic in Mexico getting enemas and ice baths and oxygen therapy while eating raw, organic and non inflammatory foods. She shunned western medicine completely. I thought she was nuts but just over 2 years ago she was cleared of all detectable cancer markers. She’s having six monthly scans and tests and is still completely cancer free. She has an Instagram account of her journey, it’s just incredible really. So I digressed a bit there, but since following her journey, I strongly believe there’s a far bigger link than we know to cancer and nutrition.

A family member has lung cancer, she’s in her 70s and never smoked a day in her life. She did however have to work in a small enclosed office with several smokers back in the 70s and 80s when it was permitted to smoke at your desk.

@underneaththeash I'm not vegan or even veggie btw

@underneaththeash many studies show a link between plant based (varied) diets (I.e not just chips) and REDUCED risk of colorectal cancers.

WHO now classes processed red meats as a carcinogen because of the increase in bowel cancer risk.

It's not always caused by lifestyle but if you have drawn a bad luck card genetically, lifestyle can tip it over in some cases.

It's a very misleading stat. The incidence is not 1 in 2 for a 5 year old, or a 22 year old or even a 60 year old.

Very elderly people often have cancer that's being managed but isn't the cause of death.

But not ever smoking will significantly decrease your risk of cancer so it really really is worth bothering to not smoke.

of course not all cancer is caused by lifestyle. But lifestyle choices can increase likelihood of having cancer. Along with other diseases.

I'm sorry you have cancer, but obviously you know that being vegan doesn't reduce your cancer risk.

It definitely must feel quite strange for you. I'm so glad her treatment is working ❤

I’m fine now @HitthefloorforTaintedLove (great username btw, one of my fave tunes!). My cancer was caught early and I had a full hysterectomy within two weeks of diagnosis. I’m about to be discharged next week - woohoo! Have to have colonoscopies and endoscopies every two years now though. Hope your DH stays well too.

Because we feel like it, @shammalammadingdong , anyone can post whatever they want, you don’t have to read it. 😂

Thank you, yes. There was a new miracle drug that is working its wonders. She is now expected, assuming no long term issues with the drug, to live a relatively normal length life. Of course this brings the strange challenges of planning for the future, when you had always assumed you didnt have one. It should be a relief, but its a very different kind of MH issue to deal with

Cancer isn't just one disease, it's a broad umbrella group of diseases, which have many and varied and very complex triggers.

Not all cancers are caused by lifestyle diseases for sure and the chain of cause and effect is more complicated than some people would have you believe. Some of it is directly caused by genetic mutations, some by lifestyle, in many cases it's hard to pinpoint the exact cause.

But it is demonstrably true that certain lifestyles, notably heavy smoking and drinking and being overweight, do significantly increase your risk of cancer.

Your friend has vastly oversimplified something.

This^

Worryingly 32% of mn users have voted and agree with your friend. 🤦🏼‍♀️
Probably why it’s advisable to take anything you see on here with a pinch of salt!

I hope your daughter is doing well.

Absolutely, cancer research charities do seem to go looking for 'worst case scenario' stories to scare people into donating. It's really not helpful for people with cancer or their families to see those constant reminders IMO. My father has prostate cancer (one of the 'good' cancers) and I constantly have to pass a prostate awareness billboard. Could do without it.

you do know that this is entirely to do with fundraising, and most of those cancers are the kinds you get when you are old - 50% of cancers are in the over 60s, and 30% in the over 75s. lots are benign too, its just as the body gets old its replication ability gets a bit rubbish.

When my daughter was diagnosed with a progressive life limiting disease, I was told to ignore all the promotional fundraising stuff, because of course they want to present any condition in the worst possible light, as its a campaign to secure charity funding from the public, who only have so much to give. If they show a relatively healthy looking 30 year old, doing OK they are less likely to get donations as if they show a poor sickly looking young kid. preferably a girl. preferably white. Its harsh, but thats what prople in this country mainly respond to.

the word cancer scares the bejeezers out of everyone. Its the big C. Its frightening and its out there waiting to get you. Thats the story the fundraisers need to say, so that you will give them cash to find a cure, or do a fundraiser. But you cant let it stop you living your life, or feel doomed by it. Of course you can do things that reduce the environmental / lifestyle risks, and those things reduce your risks of much more likely illnesses - such as heart disease, which is still the biggest killer.

It's both..some genetics, some lifestyle. Sometimes you can have the gene but it has to be activated by something in your lifestyle. It's very complicated. But simply, lifestyle increases risk of cancer.