Tobacco Documents Online

Many Scripps-Howard papers published this story by science-writer 'Jo .INDIANAFOhIS TIMES _Indianapolis, Indiana October 8', 1960 For Lung Cancer Increase Researeher Calls TB Germ Real Culprlt conducted tests which revealed ~ I shouting can inerease an ath- t b l ' f 12 s per ormance y per e e Says It Once Killed Off 'Paupers' Early f cent. Firing an unexpected shot By JOHN TROAN' I'can boost this by as much as Qn sn4 fSa ..nH..e Scripps-Howard Science Writer ~ added. Provided, of course, you •lroan, wno was proviaea wiin tne aetalis or tne study. " ., Prosperity is now being blamed for the increase in lung cancer in the U. S. A Pennsylvania physician says better times are letting more people live longer. As a re• sult, they stand a greater chance of winding up vith lung cancer. , ; Dr. Philip Schwartz, a pathologist at W a r r e n (Pa.) State Hospital, pre- sents his theory in the Dan- ish medical journal, Acta Tuberculosea Scandinavica. Basically, Dr. S c h w a r t z thinks all this talk about ciga- ret smoking causing lung can- cer Is so much t hot air. He be- lieves the tuber- culosis g e r m is the reall culprit. Once upon a; time. he explains, i TB used to kill ° most of its vic- tims before they could reach "the cancer age." So few people got lung cancer. Troan But that -was when "pauperism" was ram- papt. Today, thanks to "pro- gressive prosperity," TB is in retreat. Most of its victims live into their 50s and 60s: And that's when lung cancer Is most likely to strike. In fact, the doctor says, TB damages the lungs - leaving ecars which "may serve as the soil"' for cancer. He insists "there is no possible doubt" that cancer can sprout-dec- ades later-in "bronchial scars of tuberculous origin." Dr. Schwartz reports seeing. 14 such cases himself. He also describes 24 others In which he found both cancerous and non-cancerous tumors associ- ated with old TB scars. Of course, he adds, all TB patients don't go on to get lung cancer. Only the minority who are "stigmatized consti- tutionally"-that Is, have a Ibuilt-up susc-~ptibility to can- cer. On the other hand, many folks who never get sick with TB develop lung cancer. But, he indicates, the TB germ can do its dirty work in silence- by invading a person's lungs and setting the stage for can- cer without producing obvious tuberculosis. Indeed, Dr. Schwartz says, "we may assume" all Amer- lcans past age 30 have been Infected with TB "buss" even though they may never get i11 from these germs. Far-fetched? Not nearly as much as the theory that ciga- ret smoking causes lung can- cer, Dr. Schwartz argues. Aft- er all, he says, the s a m e statistics Ilsed to back up the cigaret theory would show smoking makes you live longer -because the a v e r a g e life span has increased along with the consumption of tobacco. 'Yea, Team! You may not be able to cheer your team to actual vic- tory-but it does help the play- ers do their best. There's scientific proof that loud shouting, especially when it's unexpected, can improve an athlete's performance by removing psychological blocks, two researchers report. In fact„they say, an athlete sometimes can help himself by doing his own yelling-as was shown during the recent Olym- pic Games In Rome. According to Medical, Trib- une, a newspaper for physi- cians, Dr. Mlchlo Ikai of Tokyo University and Dr. Ar- thur H. Steinhaus of Chicago don't shoot' the athlete. Small Doses Diabetes and cirrhosis of the liver occur together more often than Is "generally apprect- ated:'-Report by Dr. H. Kalk, Kassel, Germany. Crossing your legs ls bad If you have arthritis i'n the k n e e s, dropsy or varicose veins.-Dr. Hyman J. Roberts, West Palm Beach, Fla. Career women who are ambitious and tense get more heart attacks than ordinary housewives. - Dr. Ray H. Rosenman, San Francisco. More than half of the worid's population suffers from hunger or malnutrition. due chiefly to poverty and Ignorance. - Dr. B. R. 5en, Food & Agricultural Organiza- tion. Capsules Studies show a hat' helps keep your whole body warm- not'just your head. Alcoholism is rasponsible for more than twice as much job absenteeism In the U. 8. as strikes. In South Korea, a man can't marry without parental permission until he's 27. Byt a woman can after 23. Quick quote, from the Jou}'- nal of the American Podiatry Association: "Man's foot has grown appreciably in the last century but he can still ma~- age to get it into his mouth." BOTTLED suntan lotiods may produce eczema - like rashes in people allergic to such preparations.-Report liy Dr. LEON GOLDMAN, Uni- versity of Cincinnati. The "daily consumption of alcohol by Americans poses a greater threat to their healt,fi and well~being" thaA radio- actdve fallout from atom bombs. - Dr. ANDREW C. IVY, University of Illinols.