Live, not be afraid: how to deal with cancerophobia

What is the difference between just fear and mental illness? How to understand when our experiences are the norm, and when it is time to seek help?

Fear is a normal physiological state, a protective reaction of the body. Being afraid is not only normal, but sometimes even useful. We don’t eat obviously bad foods for fear of poisoning, we don’t walk in dark courtyards for fear of being attacked. All this is the norm, the so-called self-preservation instinct.

Fear of getting sick is just as normal if it remains in a reasonable plane. If thoughts about cancer are pushing you to get your scheduled check-ups with your doctor on time, that’s all right. If this fear constantly haunts you and you cannot think of anything else, it’s time to be wary – such symptoms can eventually develop into an anxiety disorder – a condition in which fear interferes with life.

Its symptoms are as follows: the feeling of hunger disappears, nausea appears, thoughts about the disease interfere with sleep, and any information about cancer causes heart palpitations, tremors, and excessive sweating. Fear occupies thoughts constantly, it is impossible to get rid of it.

If you recognize yourself or someone close to you in the description, urgently seek help from specialists. It’s not worth delaying with this: cancerophobia can poison life, and years spent on fear will be wasted.

What can be done to alleviate this condition?

• Do not self-medicate. Do not take sedatives that you have chosen yourself – this can lead to the development of other disorders. Contact a psychotherapist. Your doctor will help you choose the most appropriate sedatives and antidepressants.
• Stop looking for symptoms of the disease on the Internet. You will never know where the information is true and where it is false, but you will only find new reasons for concern.
• Get enough sleep, it’s the best medicine.
• Try to look at the situation from the outside. To do this, write down your thoughts and reread them when you are in a good mood. So you will see that you are winding yourself up and your fear is unfounded.
• Ask loved ones to distract you when you want to talk about cancer, and not to support these conversations.

How is a tumor formed?

We all tend to be most afraid of what we do not understand, so let’s figure out what a malignant tumor is. When life moved from unicellular to multicellular creatures, it became necessary that all cells of the macroorganism equally participate in its work and no one “pulled the blanket over himself.”

In the course of evolution, many mechanisms have arisen to control the functioning of the cell and its role. If the “rules of behavior” are violated inside the cell, the mechanism of its self-destruction is triggered – apoptosis. Thus, the body gets rid of most of the tumor cells at the very beginning.

What can go wrong? Since all the information about how the cell should behave, as well as all the means of control over it, are recorded in DNA, it is damage to DNA information that can lead to too high cell activity or a failure of the defense mechanism. DNA is damaged by chemical carcinogens or harmful physical factors such as ionizing radiation. There is also a small chance of error when copying DNA during cell division in two – that is, during the most common and natural process associated with life.

If, nevertheless, there was a failure and the tumor cell did not die immediately after birth (during rebirth), the immune system, cells circulating everywhere, act as natural killers, destroying all threats, including the tumor. If the immune system functions normally, then everything is in order with the control over the possible development of a tumor. Events that reduce immune protection: prolonged severe illness, stress, especially chronic stress, also reduce protection against tumors.

However, this aspect can be influenced, thereby maintaining a high level of protection against cancer. True, this does not negate one of the main questions that many ask themselves and doctors: what can be done to never get cancer?

Unfortunately, no promises or guarantees can be given: two-thirds of oncological diseases are accidental, and it is impossible to accurately identify the cause of their occurrence. But you can significantly reduce the risk of getting sick by following simple precautionary rules. According to WHO, about a third of all cancers can be prevented, and here’s how.

Lead a healthy lifestyle

• Quit smoking. Lung cancer is one of the most common and difficult to treat cancer diagnoses.
• Reduce your alcohol intake. Alcohol affects the risk of developing cancers of the mouth, pharynx, larynx, and esophagus.
• Watch your weight. There is a statistical relationship between being overweight and many types of cancer, such as cancer of the esophagus, colon and rectum, breast, uterine lining, and kidney.
• Reduce the proportion of fried and fatty foods in your diet.
• Increase your physical activity.
• Take preventive measures against infectious diseases. Infections are responsible for approximately 22% of cancer deaths in the developing world and 6% in industrialized countries. The most frequent cases: viral hepatitis B and C leads to the development of liver cancer; human papillomavirus – to the development of cervical cancer; The bacterium Helicobacter pylori increases the risk of stomach cancer. Timely vaccination and adherence to simple rules of hygiene will help to avoid infection with these and other infections.
• Get out in nature more often. Chemical carcinogens in our environment are responsible for approximately 1-4% of all cancers.
• Protect your skin from the sun. Ultraviolet radiation is responsible for the development of most skin cancers.

All this will not only reduce the likelihood of cancer, but also significantly improve health and improve the quality of life.

Contact your doctors promptly

In order not to worry in vain and in which case to detect a tumor at the very beginning of its development, you need to undergo regular medical examinations. The volume and schedule of these examinations is best drawn up together with an oncologist who, in addition to routine screening manipulations, will prescribe the necessary tests and examinations, taking into account individual characteristics. This will increase the efficiency of diagnostics and save you unnecessary time and money.

It is extremely important not to be afraid to contact a specialist. It happens that the fear of a diagnosis paralyzes a person, and he turns on the protective mode “it will resolve itself”. Time lost in trying to ignore the alarm bells can significantly aggravate the situation. If you see that a loved one is hesitant to go to the doctor, support him or go with him. Most cancers are completely treatable in the early stages.

Compliance with these fairly simple rules will significantly reduce the chances of encountering cancer.

In taking care of your health and protecting yourself from factors that contribute to the development of cancer, it is important not to give it too much importance and not live in constant fear of getting sick, especially if you are young. Most tumors occur in people over 50 years of age, and for those who have already reached this age, regular preventive examinations and control of existing chronic diseases should become the norm. It should become a habit, like brushing your teeth, only once or twice a year, not every morning.