IZBU about the commercialisation of Cancer?

[IamtheZombie]

The most recent offender is the Macmillan Christmas Star campaign.

If any of Zombie's family or friends do anything even remotely resembling this she will come back to haunt them.

YABU. It's a perfectly valid way of raising money.

I can't get my head around the way people talk about cancer as some kind of animate being with a will ("cancer, we're coming to get you" etc) but I accept that it helps some cancer sufferers to think of it like that way. There is no single "right" way to deal with cancer.

Actually Kaki it's usually non cancer sufferers and the media who think like that. I've known people with cancer, live with someone who has regular cancer treatment and talk to people with cancer on forums. None of them seem to buy into the cancer fight cliche.

They know that it's a dreadful disease which is helped by wonderful doctors and nurses, advances in treatment and a large dose of good luck. I do wish fund raising would reflect these facts, rather than promote the fighting cancer myth or persist with mawkish appeals.

As an aside I like Z's 3rd person style it stands to reason a Zombie's sense of self could be a little awry.

I agree with Kaki on both those points, I live with someone with cancer and while neither of us buy into or even like the personification of cancer we also don't mind how different people choose to deal with it or how they might raise money for charities who either support people who have it or are active into research into treatments and cures.
Each to their own really as long as it does no harm.

ZINBU.

My grandmother died of breast cancer, long before I was born. My mum was 8.
She refuses to give to the charities, as they never helped. She even researched when she got older as she thought being so young meant she didn't see what was going on. She stands by her choice not to give to them. And my grandmother fought till her last breath. She didn't give up, its not that she wasn't strong enough. It's that cancer of any sort is a bastarding horrible disease.

My mum wants to remember her mum all the time, not just at Christmas, not just the couple of days a year that have been taken by cancer charities.

Zombie is the most stoic person I have ever "spoken" to in the nine years I have been on this site. She has gone through so much. With strength, humour and bravery. If speaking in the third person helped her through her bad times, what does it matter to anyone ? Proud to be a member of her DBF team.

minmooch

I have name changed but I remember your thread and I rmeber weeping when i ead about your Darling son

I completely agree with OP that there are many aspects to cancer fundraising that cant really aggravate, but in this instance lets leave them to it is my vote

I hate a lot of it, but you know what if they make enough money to find a cure. then that's wonderful

on the one hand I am broken that my BFF died, on the other hand, a decade ago she would have died a lot earlier

and she did the race for life with another BFF that had a lost a mum, all in pink tutus, god love them!

its just all upsetting really

minmooch

i used to work for CRUK and would never donate not after what i saw.

madbythesea, do you feel able to share? I have my own reasons, as explained earlier, for not supporting CRUK but would be interested to hear what you have to say. Maybe a PM?

ZINBU.

I don't mind MacMillan, though I understand that their service varies a lot: they helped my Mum and I in a fantastic, matter-of-fact way when she had lung cancer. (I get so used to tacking 'no, she didn't smoke at all' on to the end of every sentence..) Very practical help available, lovely nurses and filled in where local healthcare couldn't. I don't mind fundraising campaigns if it helps find a cure.

But - and I could rant for ages about this - the pink ribbon stuff gives me the red rage (as it were). I wrote a rather long missive to my work's HR department when they held an 'awareness raising' day shortly after my mum died: not that I objected to the timing as such, but I completely failed to see how any of it helped: an office full of people swanning around in pink, making cupcakes in the shape of boobs, hanging up glittery posters that talked about 'battling cancer' and managing the odd head-tilting email about the 'brave survivors of this horrid disease' (implying that anyone churlish enough to die just wasn't brave enough)

Not a word about insisting on an x-ray for a persistent cough that's a bit different (which might have helped my Mum); not a word about checking for lumps, not a single penny donated to cancer research, local hospice or whatever, just pink fucking feather boas and ooh don't be such a miseryguts Vlad, it's all for charidee....

Grrr!

an office full of people swanning around in pink, making cupcakes in the shape of boobs, hanging up glittery posters that talked about 'battling cancer' and managing the odd head-tilting email

yeah, and the fucking PINK SHIT that get launched once a year , pink bubble bath, pink CUNTING PINK

why they have branded it like this? it baffles me. Its fucking cancer

sorry

ZINBU.

DGran just died a sad undignified death from breast cancer, no help from any charities, though excellent support in a nursing home. I don't get how stupid pink pinkness is supposed to help. Was so glad work decided not to do Macmillan coffee morning the week she died, but rather did a cake sale to raise money for equipment for a young disabled boy.

While I don't think the Christmas Star thing is very bad, I agree with the sentiment in general.

Breast cancer awareness raising is the worst . It becomes about saving the breasts, not the woman.

I also doubt that "being aware" of something helps people survive. Women are already very aware or breast cancer. And I do think people get enough information about getting tested for other sorts of cancer, too.

Funding cancer research should be done by the government.

ZINBU

Bastard cancer.

minmooch

I'm happy to share as I'm talking about some of the people there not the organisation as a whole. I believe if the governing body knew the thoughts of some who worked there they'd all be sacked.

It's a great organisation who as a whole really believes in what they are doing. Unfortunately there are a lot of 20 something digital/media people who have no idea about cancer either personally or within their family/friends.
There were some (concept/blue sky etc) meetings that I had to leave to get a coffee or fag if i stayed i was likely to punch someone

The Research scientists again were lovely and passionate about what they do and trying to make that small difference.

I was sooo excited to have got a job there as I had bx cancer but my good will eroded over time.

Has anyone seen the report about how much charities actually spend on research/help. I think CRUK was in the top 20 of bad ones.

I do get a bit sick of it always being about breast cancer as well (no disrespect to Zombie or anyone else suffering, and please bear in mind that I myself am at a stupidly high genetic risk of getting breast cancer and will likely have a prevantative mastectomy). It's all well and good making boob-shaped cupcakes and campaigning about checking your breasts - because we are all pretty comfy with our breasts these days and our husbands/partners are happy to check with us and well who doesn't like boobs?

The message about persistent changes in bowel habits and lumps in one's anus is altogether a more difficult sell. (They don't have a cupcake for that...) When I found out that a certain charity was selling fucking BROWN ribbons for colon cancer research I nearly lost the plot. I feel the same about lung cancer which is woefully under-researched - nobody is waving cupcakes or jogging round the bloody park for those poor buggers either.

There was ONE campaign I go behind run by one of the colon/anal cancer charities and I gave a lot of money (by my standards) to. They basically had a discrete campaign to send information to every GP surgery in the UK informing them of the unprecedented increase in young people getting lower GI cancers. This was intended to prompt the GP's to refer young people with symptoms quicker (or in some cases, at all). It's easy to see how campaigns like that can make a difference, but Macmillan and their shiny, glossy, over-monied, patronising ilk? Not so much.

And raising awareness is pointless if your GP is not willing to refer you, so that gets my goat as well. That is the one thing I can think of that might have saved or improved the lives of six under 40's who are no longer with us.

my friend works for a cancer charity too, and she said its very ironic that the message of the cancer charities is very at odds with GPs!

Charity- go and get this checked out (cough/bowel/bloating/pain etc)

whereas the GPs are dismissive as-fuck are they not?? by the time its taken seriously its often too late unfortunately.

OldFarticus, Zombie agrees it's not all about breast cancer. During the last 4 years she has also had a LLETZ to remove some cervical nasties and a colonoscopy which found (and removed) a few polyps that were the type that frequently become cancerous. She's due for another colonoscopy but that has to be postponed until late spring due to her recent liver surgery.

Zombie
CRUK is not all about breast cancer though you wouldn't think it from all the ads liver cancer is prominent through Dryathlon.
but they are also doing wonders with research with some lesser known cancers. though its research not a cure now. even they are at odds with the NHS as they get frustrated that drugs that should be widely available aren't.

The whole ASDA "Tickled Pink" campaign gives me the rage. Who decided "Tickled Pink" was a good name?

whereas the GPs are dismissive as-fuck are they not?? by the time its taken seriously its often too late unfortunately.

In our experience, yes.

I give to Marie Curie who through family I know offer excellent practical support. I also give to my local hospice, it's a service I knew nothing about until a family member used one. I cannot express just how brilliant our local one was at such a bad time, little things like the cups of tea and nice cakes for patients as well as the superb medical care. I know tea and cake sounds like fuck all in the grand scheme of things, I just can't explain it really.

YY to the constant hard sell by charities. My DSis had a monthly payment to CRUK for years. Shortly after Mum was diagnosed and was told there was nothing they could do,Dsis got a phone call from CRUK asking if she would consider increasing her monthly donation. When she said no, the guy got quite aggressive and said "do you realise the importance of our work?" Needless to say he got an ear bashing before the phone got slammed down!!