Wednesday, November 09, 2005
STRESS and CANCER
I thot using a Q and A method will be good.
I was made redundant last June and suffered a great deal of stress. Now I have been diagnosed with small cell carcinoma in my lung that has spread to my hips and spine. I have not smoked for 37 years. My wife feels that the cause could be traced to the events last June. Could she be correct?
It is now widely recognised that stress does play a part in illness. But no one really knows how much. It is thought that the major effect is through the immune system. We all know we are more likely to get infections and minor illnesses when we have been stressed. Stress probably damps down our bodies' immune response. Understanding more abt anti-oxident helps put us back our immune system in place.
It is probably fair to say it is unlikely that a cancer could have developed completely since last June. Although small cell lung cancers are known to grow quickly and spread early. It may be that there were cancer cells already there. We simply do not know whether the added stress in your life affected your immune system, allowing the cancer to grow and spread more easily. Cancers do change their behaviour sometimes. You will never know how much a part smoking has played in your cancer. It is true that most lung cancers are linked to smoking. But some non-smokers do get lung cancer. Statistically, giving up 37 years ago should have reduced your risk to the same as a non-smoker. But statistics can not tell you what will happen in your life. They only indicate a general trend amongst a large population of people.
Frankly, most cancer are still not well understood on how it develops which is why prevention is always better than cure. Live a health lifestyle TODAY!
