#FUCK CANCER

[actualrealnews]

From NPR News:

As Time writes, "His accomplishment: inventing a soap that could one day treat and even prevent multiple forms of skin cancer. It may take years before such a product comes to market, but this summer Heman, who's 15, is already spending part of every weekday working in a lab at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health in Baltimore, hoping to bring his dream to fruition."

[maybe-im-dark]

The man had several skin cancers! Two on his nose, one on his ear! I hate when people are insensitive like this!

[reasonsforhope]

Article

"Every year, over 350,000 women die from cervical cancer and another 660,000 are diagnosed. [Note: Plus trans men and other trans people with a cervix.] As a consequence, children are orphaned, families impoverished and communities diminished by the loss of mothers, wives, daughters and sisters. 

And yet, unlike most other cancers, almost all these cases and deaths can be averted. We have powerful vaccines that can prevent infection with the human papillomavirus (HPV) that causes cervical cancer; we have diagnostics to detect it early; and we have treatments for those it strikes. With these tools, cervical cancer can not only be stopped; it could become the first cancer to be eliminated. Some high-income countries are already close to elimination, meaning fewer than four cases per 100,000 women.

But in many low- and middle-income countries, these tools are still not available, which is why 94% of cervical cancer deaths occur in those countries. 

In 2018, WHO launched a global call to action to eliminate cervical cancer, which was followed in 2020 by the adoption by all 194 WHO Member States of a Global Strategy to Accelerate the Elimination of Cervical Cancer as a Public Health Problem. The strategy calls for countries to achieve three targets by 2030: 90% of girls fully immunised against HPV; 70% of women receiving timely screening; and 90% of those found with precancer or cancer accessing treatment.

These targets are not just aspirational, they are achievable, even in low- and middle-income countries.  Bhutan has already reached the targets, the first to do so in the South-East Asia region. 

Since introducing the HPV vaccine in 2011, Rwanda has reached vaccine coverage of 90%, and today announced its national goal to reach the 90-70-90 targets three years ahead of schedule, by 2027. Already, in two districts – Gicumbi and Karongi – Rwanda is meeting those goals. Nigeria, which introduced the HPV vaccine in October last year [2023], has already vaccinated 12.3 million girls.  

We have the tools and the opportunity to eliminate cervical cancer. 

Since WHO issued the global call to action in 2018, more than 60 countries have introduced the HPV vaccine into their immunisation programmes, bringing the total to 144 countries that are routinely protecting girls from cervical cancer in later life. With scientific advances, we can now prevent cervical cancer with just a single dose, which 60 countries are now doing.  

The largest provider of HPV vaccines to low- and middle-income countries is Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, which plans to vaccinate 120 million children between now and 2030. But this plan requires that investments in health are sustained. We are also counting on manufacturers to confirm and honour their commitments to provide HPV vaccines to low- and middle-income countries in the coming years, to avoid the supply constraints that held back progress in the past.

But we cannot rely on vaccines alone. The impact of the rapid scale-up in vaccinating girls now will not be seen for decades, when they reach the adult years when cervical cancer typically appears. To save lives now, we must match the increase  in vaccination with increases in screening and treatment. 

Decades ago, as more women gained access to pap smears in developed countries, the mortality associated with cervical cancer dropped rapidly. Today, even better tests are available. Over 60 countries now include high-performance HPV tests as part of their screening programs. Women can even collect their own samples for HPV testing, removing more barriers to life-saving services. In Australia – which is on track to become one of the first countries in the world to achieve elimination – more than a quarter of all screening tests are now done this way...

Several countries are also investigating the use of artificial intelligence to enhance the accuracy of screening in resource-limited settings. When women are found with precancerous lesions, many are now treated with portable battery-powered devices, which can be operated in remote locations."

-via The Telegraph, November 18, 2024. Article written by Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director-General of the World Health Organization (WHO).

[bubvy]

Technoblade never dies

Fuck Cancer

[visexual-maelstrom]

dang, now ashley having sam's photo at the table and them all getting emotional during the live show hits even harder. glad sam's doing well and wish him a speedy recovery <3

[dangergggg]

A smol doodle- We love you Sammy <3

[empty-movement]

Rest in Peace, Rachael Lillis

This weekend, Utena's English voice actress Rachael Lillis died after a battle with breast cancer. She was 46. Many of us contributed to her medical care fund, but cancer doesn't answer to that. A sobering reality for us older Utena fans especially is that now, both the Japanese and English actresses that performed this character have died. And from cancer--Tomoko Kawakami died at 41 from ovarian cancer. Fuck cancer.

But for now, a few interviews I found that relate to Utena:

Rachael Lillis interviewed by Molly Patterson in 1998

IRC chat with Rachael Lillis for anime.scifi.com in 2000

Rachael Lillis interviewed by Pokémon World

And finally, Rachael Lillis in Animerica in 1998

Thank you Rachael.

[starkju0]

We love you Sam ❤️

[departmentq]

[thowawayuntilfurthernotice]

The fact that someone had to set up a GoFundMe page for Rachael Lillis because she couldn't afford to pay for cancer treatment is all kinds of fucked up.

This is a woman who spent most of her VO career being a part of the cultural phenomenon that is Pokemon and she made next to nothing while working on the original Pokemon anime.

My condolences and thoughts are with Lillis' friends and family.

Fuck cancer.

Healthcare is a human right.

[newsies-lodging-house]

Big news.

I never planned to be open about this here, but I just got the biggest news of my life and I just need to share.

I was diagnosed with stage 2 brain cancer when I was eleven years old. I started rapidly going blind and was in chemotherapy until I turned 13. They stopped treating me after my right eye completely lost vision because they couldn't do anything else for me. When I finally got out of chemotherapy I had to get MRI's every 3 months for four years an until they switched to annually. I was told that it could and likely would come back and that it may become terminal.

Today I met with my specialists and they told me I was officially in remission. I don't have any more appointments, no MRI's, no more blood work, no more tests, and no more surgeries. I lost almost eight years of my life to cancer and now I'm finally getting to take them back. I'm officially a survivor. At 18 years old.

I officially beat cancer.

To the two of my exes who told me they hoped my cancer came back and wished death on me? Fuck you. Fuck you for everything. I beat cancers ass and there's nothing you can do about it. You can't take that away from me.

[burythecarnival]

well met, tumblrites.

i have been putting off posting this. writing it out makes this even more real. my beautiful girl boba fett, my best friend, my ride-or-die for fifteen years has lymphoma. it started in her GI tract then spread to her pancreas & spleen. she is also dealing with kidney disease which has eaten away at her muscle. she has been the fucking TOUGHEST cookie ever. she is the sweetest & smartest cat that i have ever had. my heart hurts...my insides just constantly ache from sorrow. i just want her to know how much she is loved & how much she has impacted my life. thank you for reading this far. i am just so fucking heartbroken & do not know what i am going to do without my calico angel.

any help financially is incredibly appreciated. i am paying for her end of life care weekly which includes steroid therapy, pain meds & anxiety meds. i am also trying to put aside money for...the day i have to say goodbye. i hate this.

cashapp: $dryboneslive / venmo: dryboneslive

[reasonsforhope]

I'm worried about the rising rate of young adults getting cancer.

For what it's worth, we've actually made a shocking amount of progress against cancer - especially the most common cancers like breast cancer, and especially in the past 30 years.

Cancer rates have been falling, often dramatically (x, x, x, x, x, x). One of the best examples it that breast cancer deaths in the United States dropped 58% between 1975 and 2019 (x).

Right now, we're at the beginning of an absolute revolution in cancer care that promises to increase survival rates even further. This revolution has been going on to a lesser degree since the first human genome was successfully sequenced in the early 2000s (and in fact, the first gapless sequencing of a human genome was finally finished just two years ago, in 2022), and to a greater extent since CRISPR DNA-editing technology was first successfully tested in 2013, and since medical digitzation/digital communication and vaccination were massively spurred ahead in 2020, by the COVID pandemic (x, x).

Right now, the results of this revolution are only beginning to trickle out into actual treatments. But I guarantee you, in the next one to three decades, the way we fight cancer will be massively transformed.

We're talking personalized genome sequencing for each person with cancer - not just for early and better detection, but even to figure out what types of treatments will work best. (x, x, x, x)

We're talking using CRISPR-based DNA editing to literally cut cancer-causing mutations out of your DNA, to edit the genes of immune cells to better detect and kill cancer cells, and to kill cancer-causing viruses. (x, x, x, x)

We're talking using CRISPR-based screening to figure out how chemotherapy resistance works, so that we can overcome it - and even weaponize it. (x, x)

We're talking using CRISPR to edit immune cells so that they recognize and target the mutations of a single individual's specific tumor. (x)

We're talking new types of testing that can predict if cancer will return years before it shows up on scans. (x)

We're talking using (non-generative) AI to massively increase the accuracy and earliness of cancer detection - which by the way is already starting to happen, there are several AI-based systems that detect cancer earlier and more accurately than doctors do. (x, x, x, x, x, x)

Also, the more we transition to a green, sustainable, and ethical future, the fewer cancer-causing substances will be in the environment (fossil fuels, oil drilling, and mining are massive sources of carcinogens at every point in the process).

Cancer is awful. That is a massive understatement. But the fight against cancer is one where there are so many reasons for hope.

[bubvy]

Since we found out about his passing, I haven't been able to make myself watch a Techno video. It felt like it would make the fact he was gone real.

Today I broke that streak

Thank you Tommy

Thank you Technodad

Technoblade never dies

Fuck Cancer

o7

[littlebosslady7]

What Liam said.

[theunstuffedpepper]

Home for the weekend.

Derrick’s immune system recovered enough from the first chemo induction, and he was stable enough, that the doctors allowed him to be discharged and come home for the weekend. What a gift. It’s been very bittersweet — getting to see him comfortable and happy, playing and snacking, fooling around with his big brother here at home has been really wonderful. Too though, we know there are some major hurdles to clear before the next time he will be able to be home.

We go back to the hospital tomorrow for readmitting and chemo induction 2 begins Wednesday. After he recovers from that, then we will do more blood and bone marrow tests, which will confirm the path forward. Likely we will move on to the stem cell transplant, which is about a year long journey, at least 2-3 months of which will be spent inpatient at the hospital. The next time he will be home with us will be in the summer, if all goes well.

We have felt the love and well wishes coming to us from every corner of our lives and I’m endlessly grateful for that. This is all I’ve been able to think about; the state of this country is absolutely horrifying but I hardly have time to think about any of it these days. Probably for the best.

I’m sitting here trying to update on “the rest” of what’s been going on and I’m coming up blank. Holden is doing well with school still - my MIL has been caring for him during the school week to keep him home and in the normal routine while B and I are at the hospital and Ronald McDonald house. I’ve all but disappeared; I’m finding it easier to eat more lately but I know another round of chemo will be starting and I find it so challenging to eat much of anything in the hospital with Derrick while he’s going through it, especially when he’s unable to be mobile or keep food down himself. I feel weak physically, prone to a lot of dizzy spells especially upon standing. I’m doing my best to take care of myself. It’s what it is, and frankly I will be fine. What matters is that Derrick will be too. I feel strong mentally and emotionally, so that’s something.

Today I’m getting some work in before heading back to the hospital tomorrow. Work has been nothing short of amazingly flexible and understanding. I am endlessly grateful for my boss and my company. They have shown up for me in ways I couldn’t have imagined.

Bright spots among the darkness. Celebrating the wins, big and small.

We can do hard things.