Saturday, April 28, 2012

Do we need cure for cancer?

Like many people, the most impressed lecture that I had in AHCJ conference was the speech by chief medical and scientific officer of American Cancer Society, Otis Brawley. I still remember that journalists in the restroom were all talking about this even after it was over. 

My boyfriend, who majored in pre-med for four years before transferring to linguistics major, long believed that there already has cure for cancer. He thinks that it was because of the lusts of politicians and doctors that it was prevented from being used as medical treatment. I am not surprised by his perspective because he also believes that the huge profits of battery industry stops electronic producers from launching the long-lasting battery power, the technology of which is also mature enough but was prevented to people like you and me. 

I may never know whether cure or new technology was hided from me in my life, but I don't expect there to be a cure from the beginning. Or, if there is cure for cancer, I would not see it as a good news.

To start with, I believe that the earth and the whole biological circle has its own balance.For thousands of years, species extincted and regenerated, temperature of the atmosphere increased and decreased. That's one of the reason that I do not buy the concept of global warming. To be more accurate, even the earth is warmer than before, it may because that it has come to another warm period like thousands years ago---like ice ages, our planet also experienced warm ages. I see huge ego when politicians are calling for investments and steps to stop the earth from being heated up. For me, they are trying to save themselves, not this earth. 

Back to cancer, I see it as a way of balancing the number of people living in this world. I am strengthened of this thought after I read articles about people who live pretty healthy lifestyles in clean environment got cancer still. 

I do not mean that people should ignore this terrible disease. I believe the man-made cancer needs to be eliminated: lung cancer from smoking, or gastric cancer from disordered diets. However, fatal disease like leukemia happens to people without certain characters or lifestyles. That's why people always ask : why me? 

And it is hard for me to develop a situation of human beings without cancer. Would people abandon healthy lives and do whatever they like? The mindset of us would be much different than the current situation that we are bounded by many things in spite of cancer: time, space, IQ, EQ and so on. My limited imagination stops me from thinking what the world would like without these cruel but sensible limitations. 

Back to a desirous people, I still believe health is the primary of treasure in one's life that's why I chose healthy lifestyles and also expects the technology would help me stay healthy and relieve pain if I get disease. If these are all done, I will see cancer as part of my healthy life.