The Femitist

This popular news article mirrors some of the ideas expressed in the paper Cancer Butch by S. Lochlann Jain. Jain feels that cancer in the United States, especially breast cancer, is “a retrieval of affect and death and illness in the context of profit.”

In this popular news article article, Dr. Carol Scott encourages people to help a cancer survivor rather than donating money to pink campaigns.

Studies have indicated that stress can affect tumor growth and spread, but the precise biological mechanisms underlying these effects are not well understood. Psychological factors such as helplessness/hopelessness/pessimism tend to lead to poorer prognoses. A new study that is getting lots of attention found that “psychological stress may play a role in the development of aggressive breast cancer, especially among minority populations.” This study showed that after diagnosis, black and Hispanic breast cancer patients reported higher levels of stress than whites, and that stress was associated with tumor aggressiveness.

What can you do to transform Breast Cancer Awareness Month into Breast Cancer Action Year Round?

Almost every cancer center has a support group for breast cancer survivors. If you want to make a difference beyond Breast Cancer Awareness Month, discover how you can support a breast cancer survivor support group in your area. If you know a survivor who is struggling with stress, anxiety, depression or hopelessness, please connect them with a support group. Maybe offer to provide a ride or take care of kids to free them to attend.

Dr. Carol Scott says that stress is a big risk factor in most cancers and that stress and anxiety can cause breast cancer survivors to relapse. Her call to action is for concerned citizens to find cancer support groups at local cancer centers and work with survivors to decrease stress in their life.

Jain’s description of cancer as a “capitalistic disease” is very disturbing and unsettling to me, but it is also very true. In class we discussed that “pink” and “red” campaigns are pretty much pointless because chronic disease is very profitable to pharmaceutical companies. Several in class, myself included, feel that pharmaceutical companies would go to great lengths to prevent a cancer or HIV/AIDS cure from ever entering the market because they make so much profit from cancer and HIV/AIDS drugs.

Therefore, Dr. Carol Scott’s advice is a great alternative to donating money to “pink” and “red” campaigns. Instead we should help the victims of cancer, adding a human connection and human empathy to a disease that is dehumanized in the interest of profit.