The Mail, notorious for its scare stories about cancer, recently published an article with the headline, From blaming stress to using microwaves, experts reveal the 6 biggest myths about the cause of cancer. It really doesn’t get more ironic than this.
Myths about the cause of cancer
Stephen Matthews at the Mail writes:
Fake news is driving millions to wrongly believe certain everyday items cause cancer, a new poll suggests.
Dr Samuel Smith, a co-author of the study, said:
It’s worrying to see so many people endorse risk factors for which there is no convincing evidence. Compared to past research, it appears the number of people believing in unproven causes of cancer has increased since the start of the century. [This] could be a result of changes to how we access news and information through the internet and social media.
Of course, the paper made no mention of how it’s been contributing to this problem.
The Mail’s scare stories about cancer
Here’s a list of everything that gives you cancer, according to the Mail. This includes many innocuous things, like deodorant. The supposed link between deodorants and breast cancer, as reported by the Mail, has been debunked.
The Kill or Cure website exists to help “make sense of the Mail’s ongoing effort to classify every inanimate object into those that cause cancer and those that prevent it”. And as some entries show, the paper contradicts itself, having claimed that something both causes and prevents cancer.
The paper is infamous for employing “sensational” techniques – like “wildly exaggerating” research in order to sell newspapers. It constantly misleads readers about cancer.
Now the paper is trying to make out it’s a debunker of cancer myths, a defender of science, and a force for battling the scourge of fake news. This is a complete joke.
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Featured image via Kerry-Anne Mendoza
