The Dangerous Stigma Around Lung Cancer Still Persists!

A very widespread prejudice about lung cancer has persisted since the 1970s. When people hear the words "lung cancer," they usually associate it only with smoking. This happens because they do not consider that other factors may also contribute to cancer development.

A commonly heard judgment is: "You have lung cancer? You smoked anyway—what did you expect?" Unfortunately, this prejudice about lung cancer persists. When many people receive a lung cancer diagnosis, the assumption “they must smoke” leads to their being stigmatized. Even nonsmokers diagnosed with lung cancer are stigmatized by this prejudice. Studies show that many people with lung cancer encounter prejudice among those around them or become accustomed to the prejudice directed at them.

What Is Cancer Stigma?

Cancer stigma is a complex term encompassing negative attitudes and beliefs about people with cancer and the social exclusion associated with these attitudes.

Prejudice can take many forms, including stigma, discrimination, social exclusion, and blame. What is shocking is that the most common stigmatization comes from patients' own families and friends; they do not want to be around the person because they think the person has an incurable disease, one they themselves might catch.

The greatest prejudice about lung cancer stems from the idea that patients deserve it because they smoked, which is not at all fair.

Related topic: What should and should not be said to people with cancer?

Is There More Stigma Around Lung Cancer?

Unfortunately, yes. If you ask lung cancer patients, most will tell you how they suffer from increasing social stigma and shame imposed by those around them. Instead of surrounding patients with love and support, people around them unwittingly make them feel guilty and ashamed.

It must also be stressed that lung cancer can be caused by factors other than smoking . The risk factors unrelated to smoking associated with lung cancer are listed below; they account for about 10-15% of lung cancers:

• Asbestos exposure
• Exposure to radon gas
• Air pollution
• Family history
• Genetic mutation
• Consumption of arsenic in water
• Cancer survivors who received radiation therapy to their lungs
• Certain supplements linked to lung cancer, such as beta-carotene

With more than 2 million new lung cancer diagnoses worldwide each year, approximately 250-300 thousand lung cancers are caused by factors other than smoking.

According to a recent study, the misconception that only smokers develop lung cancer has become an entrenched belief and remains a major problem for people diagnosed with lung cancer.

Yes, smoking is an addiction, and some people may find quitting extremely difficult. However, people can also develop cancer because of secondhand smoke or other factors unrelated to smoking.

Awareness campaigns can be a double-edged sword. Their aim is to inform people about dangerous risk factors that may cause disease. However, most lung cancer awareness campaigns place so much emphasis on the dangers of smoking that people begin to believe it is the only risk factor. It is forgotten that some people can develop lung cancer without smoking.

There is no conclusive evidence that everyone who smokes will develop lung cancer. Smoking is unquestionably harmful. However, some people do not develop lung cancer despite smoking. We should therefore avoid rushing to judge the cause of the disease, as the underlying cause could be something entirely different.

Related topic: What Proportion of Smokers Develop Lung Cancer?

Quitting smoking is another area of prejudice. Lung cancer is a complex disease that can develop over many years. People can therefore develop lung cancer even after they have stopped smoking. The efforts of someone who has quit should not be forgotten, and they should not be judged again. Whatever the circumstances, quitting smoking is an achievement, and such achievements should be celebrated.

Other Diseases Associated With Smoking

Being realistic about the harm smoking can cause is as important as ending the stigma surrounding lung cancer. Smoking is not just a risk factor for lung cancer. Many people do not know this, but smoking can also be a risk factor for many other cancers, including kidney, liver, throat, mouth, laryngeal, pancreatic, colon, rectal, and cervical cancers, as well as leukemias.

How Does Stigma Affect Disease?

A study published in 2020 in Annals of Behavioral Medicine confirmed that patients feel extremely uncomfortable sharing their lung cancer diagnosis with others. Sadly, this is a hurtful reality.

Stigma around lung cancer is a major concern for patients and for the family members and friends involved in their care.

The consequences of stigma for lung cancer patients are terrible. Society excludes people with cancer when they need it most. This can have serious consequences for their physical recovery and mental health.

One consequence of stigma is that people avoid early diagnosis because they fear being stigmatized if diagnosed with lung cancer, and ignore early symptoms. This leads them to avoid consulting a doctor and to go without treatment, allowing the disease to progress to an advanced stage, when treatment options are very limited.

Another consequence of stigma is a lack of support and deteriorating mental health caused by loneliness. This can seriously affect a patient's emotional and physical health. A study published in 2019 in Cancer Reports found that lung cancer patients experienced severe stigma, resulting in higher levels of depression and a lower quality of life.

In addition, patients may begin to blame themselves and believe they deserve all of this. They may feel rejected and alone, eventually withdrawing and experiencing guilt, anxiety, depression, and refusal of treatment.

Another harmful effect of prejudice is the mistaken belief that nonsmokers will not develop lung cancer. Young lung cancer patients are an example. Many may not take a persistent cough or shortness of breath seriously enough, or may mistake these symptoms for asthma, for example. A patient diagnosed with lung cancer at age 28 says: "I saw many doctors and had many X-rays. But no one suggested a CT scan or different tests, because they thought I had either pneumonia or asthma." Because the patient had never smoked, even specialists did not initially consider lung cancer. "One of the dangers of lung cancer is that we assume everyone with it smokes, or that it only affects people over 65. It is a terrible disease that can affect anyone of any age, gender, or race, and we are not paying enough attention to it." This prejudice is one reason lung cancer receives less funding than other cancers despite how common it is.

Coping With Stigma

No matter how common lung cancer is, prejudice persists. Patients and their loved ones feel stigmatized when they are in the public eye. How can this be addressed? Fortunately, there are ways to cope with the stigma caused by lung cancer. If you have lung cancer, or someone you know has it, you can cope with and reduce prejudice by taking the following steps:

• Raise awareness of the different causes of the disease among a wider audience. This is not just a disease of smokers. It is a cancer that affects the lungs.
• You can take action by joining a support group or even starting one. Getting help and support throughout your cancer journey can greatly help you manage your emotions and improve your mental health.
• Do not assign blame. If you have lung cancer, avoid stigmatizing yourself, and do not feel ashamed even if you smoke. If you know someone who developed lung cancer because they smoked, do not judge them. Remember that smoking is an addictive habit and that we are all human.
• Understand that we cannot change the past. We can only change the future through the choices we make going forward.

To live with lung cancer or another cancer, patients can adopt this basic rule. And this rule is liberating rather than restrictive: “Do not act like a sick person. You cannot walk around looking sad all the time. You cannot sit in a chair all the time. You will take out the trash. You will go and keep yourself busy. No, you do not have to play basketball or soccer. But go to the shopping mall. Visit your children and loved ones. Spend time with your family. Do things. Stay active by doing things. Of course, sometimes you will feel ill, but do not pretend to be ill.”

In Conclusion, Cancer Stigma Still Exists

There is strong prejudice and stigma surrounding cancer. But it does not have to be overwhelming. In fact, cancer affects more people than is commonly thought. Anyone with lungs is at risk of lung cancer. Much of the prejudice surrounding lung cancer comes from people who unwittingly judge patients, and this is a danger that must be stopped. The issue must be addressed, and people must be educated about this prejudice.

Whatever caused your lung cancer, whether smoking or something else, you should never feel alone or ashamed. No one deserves to develop cancer. It is a disease, not a punishment.