I always knew how bad cancer is, but I only just now found out how damn common it is.

@Wiseacre True, in general. But you have left out the role of genetics. Lots of people are carrying DNA bombs ready to go off whenever triggered, and it may be just aging that is the trigger. I remember my late wife, when she discovered the lump in her breast through self-exam, saying "I've known all my life it was just a matter of time, given the long history of cancer in my family, particularly the women. Now that it is here I can finally deal with it." And she did, with a mastectomy and chemotherapy. Survived long past the 5 year mark without reoccurrence that defines "cured". Only to die from lung cancer. But to your point, that was a totally different form of cancer and directly related to her decades of smoking although she had successfully quit the final two decades of her life.

More commonly epigenetics. Lifestyle is a HUGE issue w cancer.@dancingtongue

@Wiseacre Just saying, so are genetics and environmental pollutants.

@dancingtongue and random chance too

@Wiseacre Can you? I have zero control on the air I breathe and zero control on the amounts of microplastic I ingest via food and water

@Elessar Well, not zero. You have a vote to elect politicians who take environmental concerns seriously and if enough people stop buying processed food and the market for it shrinks, agribusiness will move on to something else. Not immediate solutions for sure, but saying you have absolutely no recourses is giving up. Which is what the polluters count on.

@dancingtongue I live in the country that after 20 years of Berlusconi managed to elect his coalition once again and her ex-minister as PM lol, we're pretty doomed here

Doesn’t discount what I originally said...u do the best u can and hope for good results.@Elessar

@Wiseacre True, no doubt. I know you would be a lot healthier, that's for sure.