Common Myths & Beliefs about Cancer
"One can catch cancer from others"
Cancer is not like the flu. It cannot be caught from close contact with other people. Cancer begins when some cells grow out of control and take over healthy cells. Cells do not change their growth because one touches a person with cancer.
"Accidents or injuries cause cancer"
Cancer is caused by many things that can happen to a person's cells, but an accident, injury or bump cannot change a cell to grow out of control. Some things that may increase your risk for cancer are for example: smoking or chewing tobacco, certain chemicals such as asbestos or radon gas, or certain food items such as foods high in fat.
"What you don't know can't hurt you"
If we ignore a flame it may grow into a fire and will be harder to fight. This is also true for cancer. Learning what cancer is and what we can do about it gives us ways to stay healthy. If we find cancer early, we may get rid of it in the same way as water gets rid of a flame before it grows into a big fire. To help us find cancer early we can get cancer screenings.
"An older person does not have to worry about cancer"
Cancer can affect everybody, young and old. Research has shown that many cancers are more likely to begin and grow in people who are older. This why it is so important that people over the age of 50 should start to go for certain cancer screenings regularly, for example colon cancer screenings.
"Getting cancer means you will die"
This might have been true many years ago, but nowadays there are new ways to treat cancer and find cancer earlier. If cancer is found very early we often can treat it very successfully. You might have even met people who had cancer and now are living and working with us, because their cancer was found early.
"Surgery causes cancer to spread"
Many people believe that once cancer gets fresh air during surgery it will spread like a flame. Fortunately this is not true. Surgery is often a good treatment for certain cancers. Many people who are now living among us had surgery to treat their cancer.
"It's up to God's will, whether I get cancer or not"
Many people believe that a higher power influences our lives in ways we may not fully understand. One thing we do know is that people who have a strong faith, regular religious practice, or use prayer often, also tend to take better care of their health. While some of these people may still get cancer, their health self-care practices increase their chances of getting healthy again. Perhaps the saying "God helps those who help themselves" may be the most important lesson we can learn about taking care of our health.