The Bismarck tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, N.D.) 1916-current, 1932-08-31
EVERYBODY SHOULD HAVE
CANCER PHOBIA

The time to be afraid OF cancer is
before you get cancer.
A certain amount of cancer phObia
is good thing for everybody.
Once a reader saw something in
this column that made him fear he
had cancer. In great perturbation
he hurried to his physician. The doc
tor made an examination and found
there was no cancer only neglected
case of hemorrhoids. The doctor
cured the hemorrhoids with injection
treatment. The patient happened to
be in position to punish me and did
take revenge on me for having scared
him SO. But I don't care a boot if
I did scare hint brought about
cure of his trouble, which, if not
cured, might eventually develop into
cancer. Id as soon scare every fool
in the country who tolerateS chronic
hemorrhoids if could make most of
them seek proper treatment.
Cancer begins at a spot where the
normal cells are changed by injury or
prolonged irritation to abnormal cells
and by abnormal growth the abnor-
NAL cells become cancer. In the early
stage this is all localized condition.
If the individual affected is fortunate
enough to take alarm and go to the
physician for examination and advice
at the first sign of such a spot or
lump, the chance of cure is excellent.
If the individual fails to be alarmed
or chooses to ignore the little abnor-
mality or just waits and hopes it is
nothing serious, the chance of cure
diminishes day by day.
There is movement at present to
teach the public that every woman
should have a health examination
twice a year, including pelvic exam
| ination, as a protection against can
Ger. I think this is a silly idea. But
| every woman who notices anything
unusual or who believes there is any
thing the matter with her, should
have such examination and be guided
by her physicians advice instead of
| just worrying about it or monkeying
with some alleged treatment or rem
edy for female complaint" A woman
should report to her physician par
ticularly any unusual bleeding or
| OCAlSl lllpGOIll vi Olt5ll VI WIlUOC OlS
nificance she is in doubt.
The skilled application of X-rays
and surgery is the best treatment for
any form of cancer today. In some
cases radium may be preferable to
X-ray. In any case, surgery is safer,
less painful and less mutilating in eff
feet than any salve, paste or SOL
vent" that can be used by a char
latan.
Women who become sufficiently
alarmed at the discovery of little
lump in the breast to go at once to
the physician for examination learn
in IS per cent of cases that it is not
a serious condition and requires no
treatment. In only Is per cent of
cases do such Jumps prove of serious
significance. Surely it is justifiable
to scare the IS women to that degree
for the sake of bringing the Is women
under proper treatment at the earli-
est possible moment.
Skin cancer never begins in a nor
NAL skin, but always in some spot
or blenish that has been long pres
ent and perhaps often irritated, some
such lesion as a mole, wart, nevus,
o. a rough scaly spot. All these are
readily amenable to various modern
surgical methods and should be re-
moved for mere cosmetic reasons as
well as protection against the devel-
opment Of cancer.