Cancer
Cancer is amidst the most common diseases in our country. Hundreds of different kinds of cancer exist, but all of them start with a few normal cells that change their genetics by mutating into abnormal cells and expanding. According to the American Cancer Society, there will be over 600,000 deaths due to cancer and over 1.7 million new cases just in the United States (American Cancer Society, 2018).
There are currently a few ways we treat cancer such as surgery, radiation and chemo therapies, and emotional support therapy (Bosanquet, N., & Sikora, K., 2004). These therapies offer some hope, however right now cancer is still the second dominating reason in the United States that people die (Kemp, 2000). Diagnostics also play a big role in preventing cancer, and doctors are developing strategies to assess therapies on a molecular level based on genetic risks (Bosanquet, N., & Sikora, K., 2004). If these therapies help researchers even slightly, the benefits could mean that cancer rates will not grow as much as projected.
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In a psycho-oncology study done in 2012, 49.3% of cancer patients said they were more stressed financially due to the cost of their disease (Sharp, L., Carsin, A., & Timmons, A., 2013). There are many caveats to the cost of cancer: travel, homecare, trying to work from home or can no longer work, and increased utility costs are a few. As technology increases and competitive new treatments emerge, we are likely to see the cost of those treatments go up as well (Bosanquet, N., & Sikora, K.,