Confusing treatments

Bad mystery movies can be quite distressing. It gets you on edge one moment but keeps you in the dark, and in the end, it proves to be nothing but a disappointment.

This business of searching for a cure for cancer can be like that. Not having known any answer, you get a bit excited when you stumble on something that appears to lead you to the truth, only to find yourself more confused than ever.

Maybe the situation would be different if you were a doctor. At least, you get to look at the actual condition of the patients, and you get to see the “physical evidence”—that is, the cancer cells and everything else that might be useful.

But if you were just a lay person like me, who relies only on the “findings” of those who studied the disease, you have one heck of a hard time studying all the studies, analyses, and findings of the “experts”. You know why? Because these “experts” have different ways of looking at things. They have different approaches, different beliefs, different practices. So it is no wonder then, that they come up with different answers. It would have been okay if their findings are on the same direction—well, they’re not. Some conclusions even contradict one another, to the point that these experts attack one another’s theories and claim that his theory is the right one.

Take mammogram and biopsy, for instance. I’ve read in some literatures that these are the basic steps in diagnosing cancer. But then, other literatures would say mammogram may lead to breast cancer, and biopsy may spread cancer. Which should I trust, then?

Once I browsed the Net for some recipes for my cancer warrior Mama. I stumbled upon some recipes that have soy and milk and yogurt. Well, I had read some days back that these ingredients are not suitable for cancer patients.

Whew! This is really a test of my wits.

Sometimes, in my frustration, I would feel better I was better off not having read any of these stuff. I might not have gotten my brains all tied in different knots. On the other hand, there really are things that I have found useful in my search.

Well, I guess you just have to keep your power of discretion intact and use it whenever necessary. For after all, nothing is guaranteed in this life. You just have to make the most of what you learn and pray for the best.