Information Is Power and Freedom of Speech Is a Right

Information is Power and Freedom of Speech is a Right

I was surprised by the number of negative comments my recent blog post about asparagus received. When the article was posted on CURE Magazine’s Facebook page, I never expected it to receive the type of response it did. As I read through the comments, I was confused.

In sharing the information included in the article, I intended to start a conversation and to share recent cancer-related news. As a breast cancer survivor, I take developments in the field of cancer research very seriously. That is why I am constantly perusing medical journals, news articles and medical libraries. I want to be abreast of the most recent information, and since cancer news isn’t always top on the priority list for media reporting, I do my own digging.

Comments like “click bait,” etc. negated the purpose of my article. And while I know not everyone will agree with everything published, it would be nice to know that people read with an open mind.

CURE has been kind enough to give cancer survivors the opportunity to voice their opinions, to share their own personal cancer journeys and to connect with others who’ve experienced similar health challenges. I am personally grateful for the opportunity to share. Cancer doesn’t always allow its victims the right to speak.

For the naysayers who viewed my post as a means to gain attention or publish fake news, shame on you. I check my sources and always include references when sharing medical information, unless it is something related to my own cancer experience.

To those disappointed by the article on asparagus, please know I wrote the article in a lighthearted fashion to present the information in a way that would give pause for thought. Each of us has to use information we read in the proper way. We glean the good and toss the bad, but in the process, we do need to consider the fact that not all news we read will be what we want to hear, and it certainly won’t always be pleasant.

Cancer is serious business, and I would never make light of it. For the past three and a half years, I have been in the most difficult trial of my life. Never a day goes by that I don’t think of the challenges cancer has presented me.

My post about asparagus did exactly what it was intended to do — it got people talking. It may not have been in the most positive of ways, but at least people were having conversations about the information.

Thank you to those who took time to actually read the article in its entirety. Hopefully, if you’ve read past posts, you’ve come to know me and a little of my character through my writing. For those who did not read the entire article, how can you form a conclusion when you haven’t taken time to read, think, and try to understand what the author was trying to convey?

I am not a medical professional and have never claimed to be. I am merely a woman whose world was turned upside down with cancer. I lost both breasts and many lymph nodes to cancer. I live daily with pain and the constant reminder of what cancer took from me.

Yes, the research regarding asparagus was done on rodents, but isn’t all medical research conducted on animals first? That’s the way scientists learn, by trial and error. Yes, asparagine is an amino acid produced in the human body and it does good things for us, and yes, L-asparaginase is a newly produced synthetic drug that is being tested for its beneficial uses in helping combat the effects of developing secondary tumors in the rodents fed large amounts of Asparagus.

Forgive me for venting, but I felt it my duty to rebut some of the negativity generated by this article.

We all want to understand and find ways to combat cancer. It seems we’ll never find a cure for this dreaded and most misunderstood disease but as long as we are able to read, write and process information, perhaps one day we will find a cure.

And just so you know, CURE Magazine nor any of its staff, encouraged me to write this article. I chose to do so of my own volition. Perhaps I should start including a disclaimer at the end of my posts — “The views, information, or opinions expressed in this article are those of the author, and do not necessarily represent those of CURE Magazine and its employees.”

Information does provide us with the power to make our own choices and the freedom to share information via free speech is my right not only as an American citizen, but also as a freelance writer. It’s your choice whether or not you read my posts. I hope you’ll choose to continue to read a variety of opinions as they are expressed by all of the voices shared in CURE. Each of us has a unique story and all of us have something important to say.