You are viewing a single comment's thread from:

RE: Lung Cancer Is Not Just For Smokers

in #health • 8 years ago

@deviedev

Very interesting.

On a related note; I never really understood how they can determine the cause of cancer. I mean what is "second hand smoking" really? We breathe crap all day, from polutants in the street, the barbeque grill emissions, factory chemical fumes of all kinds. Cigarettes are just as versatile in their chemical compounds as many of these sources.

And really, radon is everywhere. I mean, everywhere on earth. It's like saying "breathing causes cancer". I am really sceptical about this.

8 years ago in #health by
$0.00
    3 votes
    Reply 3
    Sort:  
  • Trending
    • [-]
     8 years ago (edited)

    I hear you, I am a skeptic myself. Radon is everywhere, but so is the sun when it's shining...and we now know (hopefully) it's a good idea wear sunscreen to protect against UV rays, which cause skin cancer.

    Scientists conduct epidemiological studies to determine the linkage between exposure and cancer (and other diseases). For radon, the studies began after noticing high rates of cancer in uranium miners.

    [-]
     8 years ago 

    well yeah but correlation =/= causation . There are so many radioactive things around us it is impossible to determine causality exclusively for one

    $0.00
      Reply
      [-]
       8 years ago 

      Modifying effects from other factors are usually taken into account. Excerpt from an article published by the National Academy of Sciences in 1999:

      The evidence on radon and lung-cancer is now extensive. Initially, research was driven by the need to characterize the risks faced by underground miners so that exposure limits that would keep risks to an acceptable level could be set. The work emphasized epidemiologic studies of the uranium and other underground miners exposed to radon, but animal studies were also conducted to address the modifying effects of such factors as the presence of ore dust and diesel exhaust, cigarette-smoking, and dose rate. Models of the respiratory tract were developed to characterize the relationship between exposure to radon progeny and dose of alpha energy delivered to target cells in the respiratory epithelium. . . . The new techniques of cellular and molecular biology also have brought new insights into how alpha particles injure the genetic material of cells and cause cancer.

      Don't get me wrong, there are a lot of pollutants as well as radioactive material in the enviroment, and not everyone will die of cancer. But if a strong correlation is found and there are low-cost ways to increase your chances of not getting cancer, might as well give it a shot, right?

      Coin Marketplace

      STEEM 0.20
      TRX 0.13
      JST 0.030
      BTC 67271.13
      ETH 3515.41
      USDT 1.00
      SBD 2.70