Esther Rantzen has got lung cancer

That sounds very ‘Estherish’.

I wish her well.

My twin brothers, six years younger than me have both died of lung cancer. One, diagnosed almost two years ago, died at the beginning of October 2022. He was a none smoker.
The other, diagnosed August 2022, died three weeks after diagnosis. He had been a smoker.
I hope Ester Rantzen will have as much time left as possible. So sorry to hear about her illness.

Very best wishes to her and anybody who is suffering this terrible disease which took my brother 20 years ago at the age of 49.. (but bowel not lung)

Aldom that's terribly sad to lose your younger brothers.
And so unfair
DH died from kidney cancer but it had spread to his lungs. He didn't smoke
His dad smoked all his life, lived until 95 and died from Covid.

We all die eventually but I guess some ways are preferable.

Ahh Esther that’s sad she is such a down to earth character I wish her well and hope its treatable

I wish her well. My DH recently had a bad cough. GP asked him if he smoked. He told her he had given up 35 years ago. GP said that unfortunately the damage can be done. Fortunately he is ok. I saw this week that all ex smokers will be offered a test for lung cancer.

If you read the whole article she says that not all lung cancers are caused by smoking. I’m not sure if that’s the same as smoking related though. Roy Castle had lung cancer caused by passive smoking. He performed in a lot of clubs when smacking was the norm.
It’s so sad fro anyone.

I have asthma from passive smoking - firstly while growing up with two smoking parents, and then smoking in the office which was allowed in those days.

I have never smoked.

A friend of my mother's had the dreadful experience of being judged. She got lung cancer at the age of 52. She had never smoked. Parents were non smokers. She was told that about 20% of lung cancer patients was not caused by smoking

Damage has been done though. Any time a famous person gets lung cancer, people assume they smoked. My mum's friend was always questioned about her smoking habits. Some didn't believe her. Very distressing for her.

It's almost as if lung cancer patients just don't get the same level of sympathy as other cancer patients.

Very sad to hear Esther is suffering with Lung Cancer.I thought how unwell she looked some time ago.

I have literally just come back from having a chest XRay tonight. I have a horrible cough but only at night when I’m asleep. My husband and son tell me I also snore and choke in my sleep!! I sleep with a window open and use an extra pillow but I do have a hiatus hernia. The GP has doubled up my Lanzoprazole and given me a nasal spray but no improvement yet. Poor Esther.

My mother died of lung cancer that spread to her brain. Yes she had smoked when younger but the tumours were in the lung the same side on which she had received prolonged radiotherapy treatment for breast cancer over 10 years previously. When you sign the consent forms it is pointed out that the treatment may cause cancer in the future. Possibly her lung cancer was caused by that rather than her juvenile smoking? But so much easier to blame the smoking such that she said she "deserved it" It broke my heart.

Lung cancer is curable if caught early enough and I hope this is the case with Esther.

If you're reading this, Esther, yes, you can do everything right but it can still catch you out. It's unpredictable.
Wishing you all the best.

Rosie51

My mother died of lung cancer that spread to her brain. Yes she had smoked when younger but the tumours were in the lung the same side on which she had received prolonged radiotherapy treatment for breast cancer over 10 years previously. When you sign the consent forms it is pointed out that the treatment may cause cancer in the future. Possibly her lung cancer was caused by that rather than her juvenile smoking? But so much easier to blame the smoking such that she said she "deserved it" It broke my heart.

It would almost certainly have been the radiotherapy treatment that caused your mother's lung cancer, Rosie51. A tragic and sad but known result.

I'm so sorry that she died thinking her youthful smoking had caused this.

Thank you for your compassion Louella12 It truly broke my heart my mother thought she deserved her lung cancer. I don't care if someone has smoked much longer than my mother, NOBODY deserves lung cancer, any more than anyone deserves to die from any disease!!

My father began smoking in the navy and carried on all his life. He died a horrific death of lung cancer in his 70s. My sister and I have never smoked and very few of my nephews and nieces do.

I’m uneasy about the way cancer sufferers are often ‘blamed’ for the disease. Did you smoke/drink/eat sausages etc? I’m not suggesting we should ignore the evidence we have about the risks associated, especially with smoking which is linked to many cancers.
My husband died recently, six months after a stage 4 metastasised cancer - kidney, lung, lymph, bones and brain. He lived a good, healthy life, enjoyed a ten mile walk the day before the devastating diagnosis.

But so much easier to blame the smoking such that she said she "deserved it" It broke my heart.
I'm not surprised, Rosie .

People can be so thoughtless and unkind when it comes to perceived 'self-inflicted' illnesses (even when they may not be). Smokers, drinkers, the overweight/underweight, addicts etc can be treated as though they deserve all they get, and I've even heard people say that they should be refused NHS treatment. It's heartless when people must be feeling bad enough already.

Yet runners with knee damage, cyclists with broken limbs caused by accidents, people who fall off mountains, people who get lost on hills, or have accidents sailing or driving, (etc etc) - all of these people could have been reasonably expected to know that there were risks attached to their behaviour too, but they are somehow immune from criticism and seen as unfortunate. Pretty much all disease is somehow lifestyle related, and yes, we know that some behaviour makes some disease more likely, but smoking is an addiction, and often not a choice after the first few packets. I'm not a smoker, so I'm not being defensive - I just hate the thought that already sick people can be made to feel even worse by judgemental comments from those who should know better. And yes, Iam, not all people with the sort of diseases that can be caused by lifestyle have them for those reasons.

Sparkle fizz I have always thought this and a doctor once questioned me too. I lived in a house where dad smoked like a trooper and my asthma was terrible. Never smoked.

I suspect it's a form of superstition, like crossing oneself against plague. If you find out that someone had smoked, or eaten 'junk food' or was overweight, or anything that doesn't apply to you, you can tell yourself that you are safe (you=generic here).

A friend of mine lost count of how many people asked her if there is a breast cancer gene in her family when she was diagnosed, and they seemed disappointed when she said no. It's the same sort of thing, but without the blame aspect. It's perhaps understandable, but very thoughtless and self-centred.

Harris27

Sparkle fizz I have always thought this and a doctor once questioned me too. I lived in a house where dad smoked like a trooper and my asthma was terrible. Never smoked.

Yes. Passive smoking has caused us a great deal of damage. My Dad "smoked like a trooper" too, and the cigarettes were rough old things in the 50s and 60s.

But there has to be something related, sonewhere, somehow, or the medics wouldn't be asking the patient those questions professionally. ^People who are thoughtless and unkind are probably just ignorant, whereas the doctors knowingly ask these questions too.

So sad for you Aldom losing both brothers so close together. 💐

Joseann

But there has to be something related, sonewhere, somehow, or the medics wouldn't be asking the patient those questions professionally. ^People who are thoughtless and unkind are probably just ignorant, whereas the doctors knowingly ask these questions too.

I agree. There is a link in some cases between lifestyle and disease. But there is also supposed to be doctor/patient confidentiality, yet people think nothing of asking the sick intrusive questions, or leaping to conclusions based on weight or other assumptions.

Another example, a friend of mine's husband died of liver cancer, and the speculation about how much he drank (not a lot) was rife. It's horrible.