Sorry to say, I'm an statistic.....though my oncologist did recommend smoke to control nausea during chemo....
Frequent or long-term marijuana use may raise a man's risk of testicular cancer, American research suggests.
The study of 369 men, published in the journal Cancer, found being a regular marijuana user doubled the risk compared to those who never smoked it.
The results suggest that it may be linked to the most aggressive form of the cancer.
A spokesman for Cancer Research UK said that no previous studies had found a link between marijuana and the disease.
Testicular cancer is one of the most common cancers in younger men, with approximately 2,000 new cases each year in the UK.
Incidence in Europe and North America is far higher than in some other parts of the world, and has been rising steadily for no apparent reason.
Known risk factors for the cancer include previous injuries to the testicles, a family history of the disease, or suffering from undescended testicles as a young child.
The study from scientists at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle is the first to look specifically at marijuana use in relation to the disease.
They studied 369 men aged 18 to 44, who had been diagnosed with testicular cancer, and quizzed them about marijuana use.
Their replies were compared to those from almost 1,000 apparently healthy control subjects.
Even after adjusting the figures to take account of the other known risk factors, marijuana use remained a clear risk factor for testicular cancer.
Just being a marijuana smoker seemed to carry a 70% extra risk, while those who smoked it regularly, or had smoked from an early age, had twice the risk compared to those who had never smoked it.
A connection was made to nonseminoma, a fast-growing form of testicular cancer which accounts for approximately 40% of all cases, and tends to strike younger.
Puberty chance
Dr Janet Daling, one of the authors, said that puberty might be a "window of opportunity" during which boys were more vulnerable to environmental factors such as the chemicals in marijuana.
"This is consistent with the study's findings that the elevated risk of nonseminoma-type testicular cancer in particular was associated with marijuana use prior to 18," she said.
Another research, Dr Stephen Schwartz, said: "What young men should know is first, we know very little about the long-term health consequences of marijuana smoking, especially heavy marijuana smoking, and second, our study provides some evidence that testicular cancer could be one adverse consequence."
The next step, he said, would be to look more closely at cells in the testicles to see if any of them had receptors set up to respond to cannabis chemicals.
Henry Scowcroft, from Cancer Research UK, said: "As the researchers themselves point out, this is the first inkling that there is any association between chronic marijuana use and testicular cancer.
"But the researchers only interviewed a relatively small number of men.
"So before we can reach any firm conclusions about whether this is a cause-and-effect relationship, rather than a statistical blip, the result needs to be replicated in a much larger study."
http://news.yahoo.com/s/hsn/20090209/hl ... ularcancer
http://www.healthfinder.gov/news/newsst ... cid=623888
Marijuana testicular cancer link
Moderator: Balou
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schererbuzz
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Ingwey Gooblebogger
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schererbuzz
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Glad you got the all clear.echc1 wrote:well i got the all clear.....personally i think they're talking a load of bollocks
Gooblebogger, my problem was almost 18 year ago. I smoked everyday since I was 16 and got the disease at 28. I quit smoking at 39, and now I'm going to the Dam at 44 in 34 days. Going to toke it up bigtime.
Media Hysterics About Supposed Cancer Link Nothing New
Media Hysterics About Supposed Cancer Link Nothing New
February 11, 2009.
According to Google News, more than 750 media outlets — that’s 7-5-0, folks — have now weighed in on this week’s pot scare story du jour: “Smoking marijuana causes testicular cancer.”
So is there any truth behind the provocative headline? Some, but hardly enough to justify the media’s feeding frenzy.
Researchers at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research in Seattle matched 369 men with of testicular germ cell tumors (TGCTs) with 979 healthy controls. Here’s what they found.
Men who self-reported having “ever used” marijuana had no statistically significant risk of testicular cancer compared to healthy controls who never used pot.
Men who reported currently using marijuana at least once per week, and who had started smoking pot prior to age 18, had an elevated risk compared to controls of contracting a type of testicular cancer known as nonseminoma.
Sounds scary, huh? Well here’s the catch.
According to the federal government, millions of people smoke marijuana regularly. By contrast, diagnoses of nonseminoma, which typically affects males between the ages of 15 and 34, are extremely rare.
How rare?
Nonseminomas account for fewer than one half of one percent of all cancers among American men.
Further undermining the study’s hypothesis is this: Since the 1970s, the percentage of American males smoking pot has climbed dramatically. By contrast, incidences of nonseminoma have risen only nominally during this same time period.
Of course, this is hardly the first time the mainstream media has jumped ugly on cannabis. Around this same time last year, news outlets from Reuters to Fox News declared that marijuana posed a greater cancer risk than cigarettes. Only problem was that the study they were reporting on actually demonstrated the opposite.
So why does the mainstream media continue to get the story wrong when it comes to pot? Good question. You can read my abbreviated answer here. And while you’re on NORML’s site, get the skinny on what the scientific literature really has to say about any potential links between marijuana and cancer here, here, and here.
Source and many links
February 11, 2009.
According to Google News, more than 750 media outlets — that’s 7-5-0, folks — have now weighed in on this week’s pot scare story du jour: “Smoking marijuana causes testicular cancer.”
So is there any truth behind the provocative headline? Some, but hardly enough to justify the media’s feeding frenzy.
Researchers at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research in Seattle matched 369 men with of testicular germ cell tumors (TGCTs) with 979 healthy controls. Here’s what they found.
Men who self-reported having “ever used” marijuana had no statistically significant risk of testicular cancer compared to healthy controls who never used pot.
Men who reported currently using marijuana at least once per week, and who had started smoking pot prior to age 18, had an elevated risk compared to controls of contracting a type of testicular cancer known as nonseminoma.
Sounds scary, huh? Well here’s the catch.
According to the federal government, millions of people smoke marijuana regularly. By contrast, diagnoses of nonseminoma, which typically affects males between the ages of 15 and 34, are extremely rare.
How rare?
Nonseminomas account for fewer than one half of one percent of all cancers among American men.
Further undermining the study’s hypothesis is this: Since the 1970s, the percentage of American males smoking pot has climbed dramatically. By contrast, incidences of nonseminoma have risen only nominally during this same time period.
Of course, this is hardly the first time the mainstream media has jumped ugly on cannabis. Around this same time last year, news outlets from Reuters to Fox News declared that marijuana posed a greater cancer risk than cigarettes. Only problem was that the study they were reporting on actually demonstrated the opposite.
So why does the mainstream media continue to get the story wrong when it comes to pot? Good question. You can read my abbreviated answer here. And while you’re on NORML’s site, get the skinny on what the scientific literature really has to say about any potential links between marijuana and cancer here, here, and here.
Source and many links
Cannabis is The Tree of Life
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Ingwey Gooblebogger
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Like I said before, it was complete bullshit.
As a research scientist, I understand research/experimental design, and this "study" had so many flaws it was hard to imagine that it got published.
Peer reviews are, in part, supposed to try to kick the shit out of a study so that, if and when published, the study's results can be justified. (Note, this does not mean that the results are true with metaphysical certitude, just that there are no major methodology problems, the conclusion's scope is within the study's boundaries, that the results can be statistically justified, and so on.)
As a research scientist, I understand research/experimental design, and this "study" had so many flaws it was hard to imagine that it got published.
Peer reviews are, in part, supposed to try to kick the shit out of a study so that, if and when published, the study's results can be justified. (Note, this does not mean that the results are true with metaphysical certitude, just that there are no major methodology problems, the conclusion's scope is within the study's boundaries, that the results can be statistically justified, and so on.)
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Sir Niall of Essex-sire
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