Today is not a day to celebrate. Rather it is an opportunity to reflect and remember the almost forgotten “Big C” as Prince Charles, the Prince of Wales, put it so cogently since cancer was overwhelmed by our concern about the other “Big C”, the corona virus pandemic.
Hospitals are stretched to the limit with the task of saving lives of patients afflicted with the virus. Consequently, the diagnosis and treatment of cancer among many other diseases are often impossible to conduct. Also, many people who should be diagnosed or receive cancer treatment are afraid to go to a hospital out of fear of being infected with the virus.
What does that mean for the global development of cancer? The World Health Organization (WHO) forecasted for 2020 that just under 20 million people globally will be diagnosed with cancer and some 52% or almost 10 million of them will die. And for 2021 the forecast is an increase in all probability of 4.5%. That is impossible to confirm because many cancer sufferers will succumb to the corona virus and be registered as victims of the pandemic. Yet, some cancer experts are saying that once the pandemic is under control, we will see a devastating increase in the number of people afflicted with and succumbing to cancer in the following years.
The situation is made worse by the fact that current cancer treatments do not provide a cure. They palliate (make cancer less severe without removing the cause) at best and provide on average a survival of five years after which the cancer recurs in a more aggressive and widespread form. Is there any hope for a cure? The short answer is “Yes”, although it may be a little while to go before the major breakthrough will be announced and confirmed.
My wife of 25 years succumbed to cancer - largely due to a misdiagnosis and the failure to be treated effectively. Subsequent to this trauma, I wrote my book “Lifeline – The Case for Effective Cancer Immunotherapy” (ISBN 978-0-9687711-3-6) that provides my wife’s case history, a detailed investigation of current cancer treatment and its failures, and the hope that cancer immunotherapy research and development, which currently provides a cure to a small extent, will offer a cure on a broad scale in the foreseeable future.
A molecular biology researcher specialising in oncology wrote, “Your book is fantastic. I've been very happy about it.” An academic linguist stated, “Very well written with subtly ironic humour at times. Very interesting to read; the message is clear.”
Finally, I wish to encourage everybody diagnosed with cancer to maintain or regain their hope for a cure. My book may just encourage you in this endeavour.