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Lifestyle change and Cancer?

  • 16-06-2021 9:06pm
    #1
    Registered Users Posts: 6,761 ✭✭✭


    A mate of mine (with no pre existing medical conditions) became vegan at the start of the pandemic, and gave up alcohol.. (she has incredible self control)... anyway.. fast forward to last Winter - she found a lump in her throat - had it taken out in Spring (Thyroid cyst).. turns out it was Malignant,.. she is only 57.. and the type of tumour is v rare apparently..

    Isn't it ironic? She became v healthy and then ill? I think she is ok though - they think they got it all out..

    But I have heard of this before - people giving up this and that - and then being diagnosed with some form of cancer.

    Just wondering if anyone else has had any similar experiences or heard of similar?

    I am not making any statements here - just thinking out loud...

    It could be just a major coincidence.. probably is. Ironic though eh?


Comments

  • Registered Users Posts: 788 ✭✭✭markmoto


    sporina wrote: »
    A mate of mine (with no pre existing medical conditions) became vegan at the start of the pandemic, and gave up alcohol.. (she has incredible self control)... anyway.. fast forward to last Winter - she found a lump in her throat - had it taken out in Spring (Thyroid cyst).. turns out it was Malignant,.. she is only 57.. and the type of tumour is v rare apparently..

    Isn't it ironic? She became v healthy and then ill? I think she is ok though - they think they got it all out..

    But I have heard of this before - people giving up this and that - and then being diagnosed with some form of cancer.

    Just wondering if anyone else has had any similar experiences or heard of similar?

    I am not making any statements here - just thinking out loud...

    It could be just a major coincidence.. probably is. Ironic though eh?

    She is not alone. Many people unconsciously able to recognise health corrosions, makes them to change lifestyle etc


  • Registered Users Posts: 6,761 ✭✭✭sporina


    markmoto wrote: »
    She is not alone. Many people unconsciously able to recognise health corrosions, makes them to change lifestyle etc

    not so sure about that - she had no symptoms when she made these changes.. her sis became vegan.. said her skin and hair was better etc.. so she jumped aboard.. she only drank on weekends.. so not like she drank a lot..


  • Posts: 4,727 ✭✭✭[Deleted User]


    I quit smoking a few years ago and was diagnosed with ulcerative colitis a year or so afterwards.

    For some reason, smokers don’t tend to get ulcerative colitis.


  • Registered Users Posts: 6,761 ✭✭✭sporina


    I quit smoking a few years ago and was diagnosed with ulcerative colitis a year or so afterwards.

    For some reason, smokers don’t tend to get ulcerative colitis.

    i have heard of ex smokers becoming ill - maybe the body can't cope with too much change at once? I dunno.. again - not making any statements.. just wondering

    hope your ok - that can be nasty


  • Registered Users Posts: 788 ✭✭✭markmoto


    sporina wrote: »
    not so sure about that - she had no symptoms when she made these changes.. her sis became vegan.. said her skin and hair was better etc.. so she jumped aboard.. she only drank on weekends.. so not like she drank a lot..

    That's what I mean without mentioning immune system our senses, vision and smell enough to make us aware of a disease even before it breaks out. Some people able to take action before hand e.g. changing nutritional intake.


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  • Registered Users Posts: 6,761 ✭✭✭sporina


    markmoto wrote: »
    That's what I mean without mentioning immune system our senses, vision and smell enough to make us aware of a disease even before it breaks out. Some people able to take action before hand e.g. changing nutritional intake.

    no - i am wondering if the drastic changes to her diet actually brought on her incidence of cancer..


  • Registered Users Posts: 788 ✭✭✭markmoto


    sporina wrote: »
    no - i am wondering if the drastic changes to her diet actually brought on her incidence of cancer..

    Without knowing all details hard to say however it takes many years for a damaged cell to grow and form a tumor.

    Prime fuel of cancer cell sugar/alcohol & some amino acids.

    Most likely she reacted to body signalling of a problem and eventually changed nutritional preferences.

    Please research into intermittent/prolonged fasting.


  • Registered Users Posts: 788 ✭✭✭markmoto


    I quit smoking a few years ago and was diagnosed with ulcerative colitis a year or so afterwards.

    For some reason, smokers don’t tend to get ulcerative colitis.

    Nicotine reduced the impact of some symptoms, but it doesn't mean you didn't have that inflammation.


  • Registered Users Posts: 25,907 ✭✭✭✭Peregrinus


    It could of course be a coincidence. Coincidences are surprising when they happen but what would be much more surprising - suspicious, in fact - is if coincidences never happened.

    But, having said that it could be a coincidence, it could also not be.

    Some cancers do have a link to dietary factors so, yeah, changing your diet can have an effect on your risk of developing a particular cancer. Obviously, we mostly make changes with a view to reducing our risk of cancer but, in principle, there's no reason why a particular change (made for some other reason, or for no reason at all) couldn't increase your risk of cancer.

    Saying that there could be a link is, of course, not at all an argument for saying that there is. To explore this, you'd need to look at the epidemiology of thyroid cancer. All other things being equal, do people who don't consume meat and/or dairy and/or eggs and/or alcohol develop thyroid cancer at a higher rate that the population at large does? If there's no evidence that they do, then there's no reason to think that your friend's thyroid cancer was in any way linked to her dietary changes. What looked initially like a coincidence still looks like a coincidence.


  • Registered Users Posts: 6,761 ✭✭✭sporina


    markmoto wrote: »
    Without knowing all details hard to say however it takes many years for a damaged cell to grow and form a tumor.

    Prime fuel of cancer cell sugar/alcohol & some amino acids.

    Most likely she reacted to body signalling of a problem and eventually changed nutritional preferences.

    Please research into intermittent/prolonged fasting.

    really, the only reason she went vegan is cos her sis did and said that her skin and hair were amazing as a result and had more energy (but my mate had loads of energy even before she changed her diet).. I appreciate your input but I don't think there was a suspected problem to make her become vegan


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  • Registered Users Posts: 788 ✭✭✭markmoto


    sporina wrote: »
    really, the only reason she went vegan is cos her sis did and said that her skin and hair were amazing as a result and had more energy (but my mate had loads of energy even before she changed her diet).. I appreciate your input but I don't think there was a suspected problem to make her become vegan


    Complex topic to discuss with many gray areas but what I know is that many decisions we make actually subconscious signalling from our own body such as microbiome, immune system etc :)

    You want to read little more
    https://www.ucsf.edu/news/2014/08/116526/do-gut-bacteria-rule-our-minds


  • Registered Users Posts: 6,761 ✭✭✭sporina


    markmoto wrote: »
    Complex topic to discuss with many gray areas but what I know is that many decisions we make actually subconscious signalling from our own body such as microbiome, immune system etc :)

    You want to read little more
    https://www.ucsf.edu/news/2014/08/116526/do-gut-bacteria-rule-our-minds

    interesting article (have a BSc in in Nutritional Sci so I understand the jargon)..

    that might be applicable to my mate had she undertaken a v healthy diet via signalling from her body eg - had she cut out all sugar to eliminate energy slumps etc.. but she became vegan - which is not healthy at all imo, for many reasons eg its loaded with sugar etc but thats another discussion.. really - twas her sister's feedback on her becoming vegan that influenced her..

    anyway - I think the previous OP is right - only research of relevant epi. studies could provide solid answers.. for now, it might be a coincidence.. still.. crazy..


  • Registered Users Posts: 1,252 ✭✭✭echo beach


    The unfortunate fact is that the cancer probably started many years before the lifestyle changes.

    It is natural to try to find an explanation for illness but usually it’s just sheer bad luck.


  • Registered Users Posts: 6,761 ✭✭✭sporina


    echo beach wrote: »
    The unfortunate fact is that the cancer probably started many years before the lifestyle changes.

    It is natural to try to find an explanation for illness but usually it’s just sheer bad luck.

    I think you might be right!


  • Registered Users Posts: 32,634 ✭✭✭✭Graces7




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