Pancreatic cancer is extremely aggressive. No amount of positive attitude will help, especially when it comes from a red carpet going into a Stones thing.

Yeah, that "The Secret" lady is going to rot in hell for saying that people with illness, and especially terminal cancer, have somehow brought it on themselves.

So you're suggesting that the next time one of Swayze's costars is asked about his illness, they respond, "Eh, we've all gotta go sometime"?

However, Swayze does have the fact that he can rip cancer's throat out with two fingers going for him, even if cancer did fuck guys like him in prison.

Nobody sits Cancer in the corner.

Having watched two parents and both in-laws succumb to cancer, I will tell you: positive thinking is a crock that you push just the same, because it never seems like the alternative is something anyone with a heart could bring him or herself to do.

The government has spent upwards of $2.3 million on researching the effectiveness of prayer in curing disease since 2000. Can we keep this embarrassing fact out of the time capsule?

Swayze! *sob*
@DorothyMantooth: Well, Kelly's a Scientologist, right? I'm shocked that she didn't say that she and Tom Cruise were the only ones who could help.

I used to believe that mind over matter crap and met someone who lost their father to cancer. From that moment on I stopped believing that someone would WANT to leave his daughter behind. Try explaining this theory to a child who lost their parent. You can't.

@hhpeterson13: totally. I do believe that your attitude can help you COPE with illness and despite what these studies say, that it can't hurt as far as helping the healing process is concerned.

One of the examples from "The Secret" is about a woman who really wants to buy a necklace so she puts the wish "out into the universe" and soon, she 'magically' finds money to get the necklace. No kidding. It's good to know "the universe" can't be bothered to prevent childhood leukemia or AIDS pandemic but is all over your accessories fetish.

@KarenUhOh: Agreed. It's baloney to suggest that positive thinking leads cancer patients to blame themselves for their illnesses. And anyway, if a person's time is limited, shouldn't it be with some hope, however remote?

If anyone had told my mother she should face cancer by worrying more and ultimately giving up, she probably wouldn't be here.

My cousin Neil was in a really bad mood the day the meteor hit him in his backyard. Totally his fault.

@KarenUhOh: Exactly. What else can you say in that situation? "I love Patrick, but the odds of surviving pancreatic cancer being what they are, I'm not inviting him to my New Year's Eve party, if you know what I'm saying."

But enough of this maudlinity.

Lynch also told reporters, "I'll bet Patrick could still kick Ben Gazzara's ass, even if that old buzzard's not dead!"

The linked study look exclusively at head and neck cancers. Swayze reportedly has pancreatic cancer. That's not a particularly helpful study even if pancreatic cancer is a grim prognosis for most, but not all. See: Steve Jobs.

Why would anyone expect celebrities to dispense sound medical advice anyway?

@PimpMyCouch: I was actually waiting for this to be a Scientology jab, too!
I think this might be Denton's real April Fool's joke.

Positive thinking helps the patient and the family get through the entire process. It may be unrealistic at times, but it's most likely an easier way to get through it. How many people actually blame a cancer victim's death on the fact that the patient wasn't thinking positively enough anyway?

@fiveinchtaint: It doesn't work. I speak from experience. Pay me the 2.3 million dollars now, government!

@DorothyMantooth: That he let a Scientology joke go by? Hmmm...

But seriously, I want my "Road House" poster back.

@PimpMyCouch: Only one way to be sure: Nick, care to clarify?

Do you really expect her to tell everybody about the shark cartilage and coffee enema cure on the red carpet?

@McCheeburger:
Like Parker/Stone said in "Team America", why the fuck do we pay any attention'give wait to anything celebrities have to say? They're one step up from trained seals.

@Cacafuego:
Excuse me, that should "pay any attention/give any weightto anything celebrties have to say?" For some reason the damed "your comment has been received" message is hanging in the middle of my comment screen when I type.

@BettyCrocker: I think the intent of the article is to say that *relying* on having a positive outlook can be harmful. I got more of a "don't think that a positive outlook will save your life, or that not having one will necessarily kill you either."

Some folks out there actually believe that good thoughts are all it takes to cure an illness. Take the case of the 11 year old girl who died because her parent's believed that positive thinking (i believe tehy called it 'prayer') would cure her of her Type 1 (managable, but incurable) Diabeties.

That could also be stated as...

Positive thinking: 0
Type 1 Diabeties: 1

Ehh, she said that for the fans. Not for him. She said it in an interview, right? People say these sort of faux-comforting things to the grieving, generally, not to the person who's dying. I don't think Kelly Lynch is that dumb. Maybe she is. I don't know. She famous. She could be.

No, really, I think Denton's right. She should have dropped to the floor in a sobbing heap of pitiful anguish, curled into a little ball, and moaned, "the horror. The horror."

When you're chronically ill people tell you all the time that the problem is in your head. First you get no sympathy, second you get told it's your fault plus you have to cope with the illness.

I think they do this because telling you this makes them feel superior to you AND it allays their own fears about the unpredicability of serious illness. I.E. They're not sick now nor will they ever be because they "think" better. These people are also usually sort of insensitive assholes so it's funny that they infer that they're so bright and positive.

@KarenUhOh: I hear you, and every family copes with sickness in its own way. But I don't believe the choice is simply between irrational faith and absolute despair. One can pursue any treatment that has a chance, make the most of the time that remains, and hope that medical progress is more rapid than the spread of disease. Why does a celebrity's belief in the power of positive thinking so bug me. From personal experience, a cancer sufferer's belief that they have somehow failed is the most heartbreaking of all misconceptions about the illness.

@Nick Denton: But if we all understand that "You're so strong and positive; you're sure to get through this" are trite platitudes, why are we implying that cancer sufferers don't? Are you saying getting cancer makes you stupid, Nick? 'Cause that's not very nice.

My own cancer is plotting a return just to show what a negative bitch I am.

Depression is known to have a direct impact on one's physical health. So if nothing else you would hope that trying to counteract depression would help alleviate some physical symptoms. I definately believe in positive thinking in addition to Western medicine.

@DorothyMantooth: depends, brain cancer could...

@valarmorghulis: Not nice!

Americans can't quite believe they can't outsmile death.

Even happy people are going to die.

A positive outlook (as much as can be managed) may affect how much a person enjoys the time he or she has left. It may not affect quantity, but it may affect quality. That said, I don't believe in telling people in these conditions that they should somehow be more upbeat.

Still, I don't know what else Kelly Lynch could have said.

@Hortense de Beauharnais:

What is worse than dying of cancer is being told that you "wanted" cancer or "needed" to get cancer on some spiritual level.

Said of course with a smug, superior attitude by someone who has never faced a life-threatening illness.

As someone who was diagnosed 9 months ago, I can say that having a positive outlook is an important component of getting back to a place where you can actually feel well and be well again. Dwelling on negativity of any sort is a mistake, especially when something like this has entered your life. Blaming yourself/God/the world wastes energy that you should be directing elsewhere. You feel completely shellshocked and overwhelmed, and that your life is in the hands of others, but you can control how you respond to your situation.

I believe that projecting a positive attitude is also important even when you know that your prognosis isn't favorable. My Dad, who died of cancer several years ago, knew his fate, but even to the end, when asked "How are you?" always answered, "I'm wonderful!"
He refused to be negative, and wanted everyone around him to do the same for the remaining time he had left. Little did I know how inspirational this would be to me during my own experience.

@KarenUhOh: Amen, sister. A-fucking-men.

@AuntieFreeze: Thank you for this perspective and best wishes to you.

@KarenUhOh: The flipside of positive thinking is blame; when I was diagnosed with third stage cancer a friend of mine seriously asked me, "What have you done to bring this into your life?"

I said, "I hang out with unsupportive people." She did not get it.

@raincoaster: Hmmm... I'm not 100% sure on this, but I'd say your friends comment warrents a punch to the throat.

In her (mircoscopic) defense, it could have been meant sarcasticly...but that's something that would have been obvious by tonal intonation.

@PimpMyCouch: In fact, where IS Tom Cruise? I thought he said only Scientologists could save people and that Scientologists were the planet's superheroes. Patrick Swayze needs your help, ClosetedGayMan!

Seriously, if this was not a Denton posting I would characterize the poster as an abject imbecile, creating drama where there is none. A petty broadside over an innocuous remark about a topic that's difficult for any lay person to discuss extemporaneously.

Ewps!

@valarmorghulis: I didn't have the strength to punch her. I just do the proper, traditional Canadian thing and talk about her on high-pageview blogs all over the Internet. She was quite serious, too.

I think the deal is that regardless of the severity of the illness, especially the one Swayze's dealing with, the celebs don't know how advanced it is or isn't. They aren't cognizant of the true prognosis or whether someone like Swayze or anyone can beat it. Maybe there's a miracle somewhere, maybe there isn't.

Frankly Swayze's cancer is one of the worst ones (like there's a good one). That being said, platitudes are about all celebs can muster, it's all many of us can offer. We are either proven right or wrong.

@McCheeburger: I tend to agree with you. I am a health professional in oncology, haematology and palliative care. Something this complex, painful and emotive needs a different forum to gawker.

@AuntieFreeze: Well done on coping so well with such a disempowering experience. My partner has been clear for a year now and took himself off overseas on a motorbike trip to celebrate. Current location: S. America hospitalised with broken bones. fughead.

A positive attitude helps physiologically by being calmer (lower pulse rate, lower blood pressure), more motivation to be compliant with medical treatments and manage side effects (some which are potentially fatal if ignored/neglected) and more prepared to embrace complementary therapies which have psychological benefit.

It is also important that support networks give the person with cancer permission to feel like shit, and be open and honest. It's awful to see someone struggling to live up to everyone's expectations and feel like they will let the side down. Communication.

Let's consider some alternative answers by our heroine:

"Oh, he's toast!"

"Ick, his breath always stank of cigarettes and Alvin Ailey."

"Put a fork in him, he's done."

"Eh, now he's like the wind."

" I was just discussing his case at the oncology roundtable in Davos..."

"At least he hasn't flashed the paps his mangina!"

@Nick Denton: Thanks for this Nick.

One of the best pieces I've ever read about the "tyranny of positive thinking" is Barbara Ehrenreich's article about the the infantilizing trope in breast cancer. She argues that "effect of this relentless brightsiding is to transform breast cancer into a rite of passage-not an injustice or a tragedy to rail against, but a normal marker in the life cycle, like menopause or graying hair."

"To the extent that current methods of detection and treatment fail or fall short, America's breast-cancer cult can be judged as an outbreak of mass delusion, celebrating survivorhood by downplaying mortality and promoting obedience to medical protocols known to have limited efficacy. And although we may imagine ourselves to be well past the era of patriarchal medicine, obedience is the message behind the infantilizing theme in breast-cancer culture, as represented by the teddy bears, the crayons, and the prevailing pinkness. You are encouraged to regress to a little-girl state, to suspend critical judgment, and to accept whatever measures the doctors, as parent surrogates, choose to impose.

Worse, by ignoring or underemphasizing the vexing issue of environmental causes, the breast cancer cult turns women into dupes of what could be called the Cancer Industrial Complex: the multinational corporate enterprise that with the one hand doles out carcinogens and disease and, with the other, offers expensive, semi-toxic pharmaceutical treatments."

Full article: [bcaction.org]

My father was diagnosed with stage 4 lung cancer in December of 2005 and given 6 months. I responded with heavy drinking, angrily shaking my fist at the sky, cursing an uncaring god and scaring people off by cornering them and spouting out lung cancer fun fac