do u really think they are doing enough ?

Hi Alta,

I think everyone has a day like you are having. I try to look on the bright side. They have a new vaccination for cancer. Didn't watch it on the news last night but heard about it. I think there are so many cancers out there and so many reasons why we can get it that it is a hard beast to track down. I am trying to help my kids and get them to eat better to stop cancer in it's tracks. I'm doing the same for me to make sure it goes away for good. It does suck that they can't find a cure and so many people are getting it. I think we see more people getting it because it is also not a "taboo" to talk about it any more. I agree we need to push for things but maybe one step at a time. Get more people to realize it isn't a death sentence and we need more research. Have you ever gone to a Relay? That will help you see how everyone is trying to raise money to kill the beast for good. Take care.

Lisa

Maybe im going to sound bitter but I do believe that they can do more than they are doing. I believe that alot of pharmacuticals and Drs are making alot of money on all the research and there is more out there to help that they dont say. Its a crule world out there and alot of crooked people. People get paid of everyday. Light bills go up, heat bills go up and no one does anything about it. Becauase the people that can do something about it are probably getting paid off by the electric companies so they dont help out. Its a sad world we live in when people care more about money then the people. Sorry but with the war, electric, heat, gas prices all going up this world is making me crazy.

2bhealed said:

Hi alta29,

Since I have no fear sounding like a crackpot I'll just come right out and say it:

CANCER IS BIG BUSINESS!!

It's kinda like a "duh factor". Of course "they" are not going to find a cure. Can you even start to think what that would mean? Think about all the lucrative businesses out there that would fold. No Siree Bob. This "War On Cancer" is as bogus as musiclover thinks the Eat Right for Your Type diet is! haha

It's no War. Not at all. They want us to believe they are making great gains and lots of progress so they throw us a bone every so often.

Go to www.cancerdecisions.com and read their archived articles on this very thing. Dr. Moss was a researcher with Memorial Sloan-Kettering and he can tell you about conver-ups and how the spin is put out there on new drugs. It's so much bahooey.

I'm not bitter about it because I have not engaged in it (having done all alternatives and didn't buy into their drug regimens), but it sure pisses me off for all of you who are suffering at their hands. THAT'S what pisses ME off!!!!

Doctors take an oath to do no harm and daily I read about all the horrible affects of chemo and what your bodies are going through.

Even if my cancer comes back I will NEVER regret that I did not do the chemo and that I chose a route that did not include lining the pockets of the EVIL pharmaceuticals. Thankfully I believe in a just God and the greedy will get their just rewards.

ok well, I better get off my soapbox now and go play outside in this beautiful sunshine!

peace, emily who would rather juice a carrot than pop a pill.

Emily,

AMEN!!!

Are they doing enough? Well, that's a loaded question.

The short answer is - no, same as more can be done to cure all kinds of nasty diseases. I'd like to think that no beautiful innocent children will ever be plagued with childhood leukemia ever ever again. Even more existtential than that, I wish every child in the world has clean water and not go to bed hungry.

But, not enough is just reality. Unless of course if you're an oil company and you need government subsidies to the tune of 6b last year. But I do digress. There are so many competing interests vying for a limited amount of resources - intelligence, money, time etc. The US government did put a lot of money into cancer research, but years later, the War on Cancer turned up very little tangible results. What improved survival rate over the years turned out to be early detection and vigilence.

My mother is a univ. professor in genetics. Most of her students, the brightest and the most caring, are currently in cancer research at NIH and many other prestigious places around the world. From their standpoint, they are doing something about it everyday. That said, cancer is not a single disease but a class of diseases - it's a hard nut to crack. So the optimist in me says a lot of smart people working on it will result in something positive. The scared cancer survivor in me desperately hope and wish that more can be done so there's less suffering in the world. So what gives?

Going back to early detection - not only in increses survival rate, it decreases treatment cost. So I think until a breakthrough happens, early detection is our best ally. This is why I ask all of us to get off our chairs right now and give 10 cheers to KathiM for the work that she's doing - to lobby insurance companies to pay for early screening. 10 cheers for KathiM - the lady with the peach fuzz, spare balls and a world of enthusiam and positve energy. And, while we are up, go and tell everyone to go and tested! Help spread the word - it's the same as help to spread the cure.

The fact that they found polyps in your 21-year old probably just save her from surgery and chemo 10 years later. So there - you're an angel of a parent to have gotten her into the test.

Will there ever be a day where there is no cancer? I don't think so. I think cancer is just a part of life - when cells go bad. But ya know what, even with today's technology, early cancers are very treatable. And every body who has a polys nipped is a life saved.

Nouf rambling from me - I am going to go off and yell colonoscopy at at least 6 people today!

Cheers,
Ying

Remember that the average span of life a 100 years ago was 45. We may not have perfect health care, but we've come a long way. jams

Hi Alta -

You raise some good issues. I can be as radical as they come, but I also know that 30 years ago they mostly just just "opened you up", said "nothing can be done" and that was it.

So, there has been some progress.

Has there been enough progress? No. And given all the tech progress that has been made, it does make you wonder. But, cancer is many diseases, not just one. So, more difficult to fight this beast. There will probably never be "A cure" for "cancer".

I am not pleased by the progress made by the "War on Cancer", but as a Stage IV CRC patient, I am also pretty sure that 20 years ago (or even 10) I would not be alive today. So, there is progress.

I share your cynical view of pharmaceutical companies and other researchers, but I have to say that since my diagnosis I have met some fine medical doctors and researchers. And, thus, I don't believe it is all bad - there are smart folks out there doing research to try and help us.

I just hope they can help in my lifetime. And, I remain skeptical, but also know that I have met dedicated researchers who want nothing more than a "cure" for us.

Tough issues to think about.
Betsy

no I don't think they are doing much, and they are denying anything that doesn't have the blessing of the $ Gods. You doctor won't talk to you about alternatives, stating there is no "science" or studies to prove the new or old protocol; in many cases the doctors can't speak to the patient about alternatives unless the patient asks. Big drugs is as powerful as big oil, and they intend to stay that way. Even ACS is controlled by funds from big drugs-i wouldn,t be suprised to find them lurking here.. Cancure is trying to do something - they have created a forum for study curezone.com to obtain more information about alternatives-a forum where anyone can contribute experience, data, etc about any new protocol, its success or failure, etc. Go
there and create your own survey..
wwww.curezone.com
If they can spend 900 billion on IRAQ, we need to convince them that cancer is a terrorist plot, and
that it originates in the middle east..then watch them throw the dollars at cancer research.
IT's really a lifestyle disease which is destroying our immune systems with "dead" food..but again the govt subsidies would never allow people to stop eating meat, sugar, and junk food..what would the cattle ranchers do? The corn && dairy farmers? You are what you eat, and it is killing you..

Your message evoked strong responses so I would like to give my perspective:

To answer the question "has enough been done?" is, I believe, difficult to answer in a meaningful way. There has been, and continues to be, much effort and resource utilized in trying to develop new treatments for cancer. Unfortunately, not all scientific discoveries lead to new treatments. New discoveries that initially look promising very often do not pan out for reasons of either lack of safety or lack of efficacy (or both) which emerge along the path to bringing new drugs to patients. Drug development is not a matter of building widgets. Human beings are complex biological organisms and there are many factors which influence the interactions between drugs and patients and disease processes. Cancer is equally complex. As scientists learn more detail about what cancer is and how to attack it, novel drugs are being developed. For example, many of the newer "targeted therapies" under development today for cancer are starting to show promise and some of these are now approved for patient use. It was not very long ago that other "promising" new drugs failed to live up to expectations. Each step provides new information to build upon.

Just as drug combinations containing protease inhibitors revolutionized the treatment of HIV disease, some believe medicine is at the cusp of treating cancer in a more meaningful way. Only time will tell if this is the turning point.

Howard

These posts are incredible. How informative!!!! I have my moments of believing there will be no cure. The big question has never been answered...how does cancer start? What causes the cells to turn goofy? We still do not know. I really think chemo is such an ancient way to fight this disease. Poison to kill cells. There has got to be a better way. Also, the pharm companies are making soo much money. All of this just makes me confused and mad at the same time. I just pray to God that we find an answer to this horrible beast. The beast has hit many friends of mine. I am sick of seeing the devastation of this disease.