More from the integrative Dr.

Fayard said:

My doctor told me the main
My doctor told me the main causes are as follow, which includes some of the ones your mentioned:

- Women over 60
- Women with diabetes
- Obesity
- Family history
- Never been pregnant

I was in the last category, never been pregnant.

HMMM??
I'm having trouble wrapping my head around this. Is someone playing God here?

Cause = anything that produces an effect or result.
Contribute to = be partly responsible for.

NO ONE can accurately say what causes cancer (other than God). There may be contributing factors or common threads in cancer patients. How many obese people don't have cancer? And how many people posting here had no risk factors - pictures of health who took good care of themselves. When I asked my doctor what caused my UPSC he said "bad luck".

Why would someone place blame? I feel badly for you Debra if that is what you are experiencing. What a shame. There's a saying that when a person points a finger there are 4 more pointing right back at the person.

Now the stress thing has a connection to the immune system and it's ability to fight off illness. And we ALL have stress. It's how we perceive things and handle stress that are the culprits..... And some husbands can be particularly stressful!

Carl Simonton's book, Getting Well Again, discusses stress at length and helps the reader figure out their own stress factors and how to deal with them so we don't get sick again. I continue to recommend this book highly.

I used to wonder about how and why I got cancer but then decided that it doesn't really matter. My job now is to live a healthy well-balanced life and enjoy every moment and to avoid toxic people and situations.

All the best, Mary Ann

We don't need no stinking causes
You could say that birth caused the cancer because all of us - even those who live the healthiest of lives - are going to face a dreaded illness at some point. That's life. Debra, it's not your fault. Knowing the cause (there are at least six for UPSC)is not going to cure your cancer or put you in remission. Focus on being good to yourself, including putting yourself in the company of positive, non-anxiety producing people. Take it one day at a time. Each day is yours to do whatever you want with. Wishing you good health, tranquility and joy.

norma2 said:

Don't beat yourself up, Debrajo.
My question is if you knew these things would it have changed anything? I know in my case probably not. I also smoked and drank alcohol. Put that on the list too. Now I eat right, have a wonderful life, and feel great. I am healthier than before the cancer diagnosis.

Like the old joke, if I knew I was going to live this long I would have taken better care of myself.

RISK FACTORS?
Everyone has their own ideas on what is cause of cancer. I'd think most of these are what we'd call risk factors. Doctors often cannot explain why one person develops cancer and another does not. But research shows that certain risk factors increase the chance that a person will develop cancer. These are the most common risk factors for cancer:

Growing older
Tobacco
Sunlight
Ionizing radiation
Certain chemicals and other substances
Some viruses and bacteria
Certain hormones
Family history of cancer
Alcohol
Poor diet, lack of physical activity, or being overweight

Many of these risk factors can be avoided. Others, such as family history, cannot be avoided. People can help protect themselves by staying away from known risk factors whenever possible.

Over time, several factors may act together to cause normal cells to become cancerous. When thinking about your risk of getting cancer, these are some things to keep in mind:

Not everything causes cancer.
Cancer is not caused by an injury, such as a bump or bruise.
Cancer is not contagious. Although being infected with certain viruses or bacteria may increase the risk of some types of cancer, no one can "catch" cancer from another person.
Having one or more risk factors does not mean that you will get cancer. Most people who have risk factors never develop cancer.
Some people are more sensitive than others to the known risk factors.

As a few of you have mentioned, almost a crap shoot...not like God gave us all a book on how our lives will play out. Therefore, take it in stride and try to enjoy each day. What I've learned to do, take better care of myself and avoid many of the so-called "risk factors" as many of us have mentioned.

Enjoy life, it has an expiration!
Jan

jazzy1 said:

RISK FACTORS?
Everyone has their own ideas on what is cause of cancer. I'd think most of these are what we'd call risk factors. Doctors often cannot explain why one person develops cancer and another does not. But research shows that certain risk factors increase the chance that a person will develop cancer. These are the most common risk factors for cancer:

Growing older
Tobacco
Sunlight
Ionizing radiation
Certain chemicals and other substances
Some viruses and bacteria
Certain hormones
Family history of cancer
Alcohol
Poor diet, lack of physical activity, or being overweight

Many of these risk factors can be avoided. Others, such as family history, cannot be avoided. People can help protect themselves by staying away from known risk factors whenever possible.

Over time, several factors may act together to cause normal cells to become cancerous. When thinking about your risk of getting cancer, these are some things to keep in mind:

Not everything causes cancer.
Cancer is not caused by an injury, such as a bump or bruise.
Cancer is not contagious. Although being infected with certain viruses or bacteria may increase the risk of some types of cancer, no one can "catch" cancer from another person.
Having one or more risk factors does not mean that you will get cancer. Most people who have risk factors never develop cancer.
Some people are more sensitive than others to the known risk factors.

As a few of you have mentioned, almost a crap shoot...not like God gave us all a book on how our lives will play out. Therefore, take it in stride and try to enjoy each day. What I've learned to do, take better care of myself and avoid many of the so-called "risk factors" as many of us have mentioned.

Enjoy life, it has an expiration!
Jan

Debrajo
I hope your husband and his family never learn of this first hand, but cancer is an "equal opportunity" disease - it does not discriminate. Even "superior genes" have succumbed.

sunflash said:

Like Mary Ann, my doctor, a
Like Mary Ann, my doctor, a prominent gyn/onc, told me that getting UPSC was simply "bad luck!" She told me there were NO risk factors when I questioned her.
I have never been obese....as a matter of fact always been on the thin side. I ate healthy before my diagnosis, and was a regular member of my gym.
My abnormal cells were picked up on a pap smear....and sent through pathology. There was no indication of cancer, but abnormal endometrial cells (glandular) were picked up on my pap. Thank goodness she insisted on a hysterectomy!
There has NEVER been cancer in my family before......I was the first.
Cancer is indeed an equal opportunity attacker. Nobody asks for this nor should be blamed for getting it!

Weight and Uterine Cancer: Many Variables

Agreed, this disease often seems to strike randomly. Despite the factors rightly cited by Jazzy--ionizing radiation, alcohol, exposures to chemicals such as pesticides--other factors (such as nulliparity and weight seem to be random.

Where weight is concerned, have often read that obesity is highly correlated with greater susceptibility to endometrial cancer.
But one clinical article suggested that UPSC, in particular, often seems to strike thinner women. For no rhyme or reason suggested by the article.

So bottom line is never to blame outselves. (At first I assumed that lack of children had been a major factor in my disease--only to see so many women on this site diagnosed with the same after having had children!)

So let's not add to our already challenging situations by "blaming" ouselves for our disease. Instead, let's do what we can to prolong our lives.

Love,
R

jazzy1 said:

Hum....who really knows who, why or what?????
When I found out I had cancer, first thought came to mind -- why me, what did I do to deserve this horrid disease? Had contemplations on my thoughts for 20 minutes. Came to the conclusion, why go there as it's in the past and I can't do a damn thing about it....don't waste my energy going backwards with worry.

Decided to pull up my big girl pants and move forward, do my research on how to keep my body healthy, thanking God I'm still here to enjoy my days.

None of us truly knows what causes the disease, so lets try and enjoy today!!!

Hugs to all the warriors on this path....
Jan

Wholehartedly agree
with both Jan and Rosey..... using energy to prolong and enjoy life and not look back worrying and wondering is a good thing.