Is “Movember” Just Another Pink Ribbon Scam Targeting Men?
It
seems as though there’s a social awareness campaign for almost
everything these days. Plastic yellow bracelets, pink ribbons,
color-layered social media profile pictures… and unkempt facial hair
during the month of November. These are among the many visible ways that
people in the modern age attempt to show their support and solidarity
for important causes they feel are worthy of attention.
Cancer is probably the most prominent feature of this ever-expanding awareness blitz, with October’s Breast Cancer Awareness Month for women now succeeded by November’s No-Shave “Movember” for men. Guys everywhere are now being asked to ditch the razor in favor of a mustache during this Thanksgiving month. This is supposed to raise awareness about testicular, prostate, and other forms of male cancer that are said to be on the rise throughout the industrialized world.
There’s a sort of sentimental satisfaction that comes with hopping onboard this awareness bandwagon. “If it supports finding a cure, count me in!” is the general sentiment held by many. But does layering up in shades of pink and neglecting smooth skin really do anything to fight the growing epidemic of cancer? A closer look at the facts spotlights a whole lot of focus on money with these campaigns, with very little attention directed towards finding actual cures.
The problem lies in the fact that campaigns like Movember are more about generating cash flow than they are about finding cures. Much like Susan G. Komen for the Cure, which I’ve addressed in previous articles dealing with breast cancer, the Movember organization funnels quite a bit of cash into superfluous and largely undefined “research” endeavors. And, upon closer analysis, these mostly cover a lot of people’s salaries in the ever-burgeoning, multi-billion dollar cancer industry.
Are these folks really interested in finding cures for cancer? Some of them might be. But the bigger priority in all this seems to be sustaining job security. Quite frankly this wouldn’t be an option in the event that expensive cancer treatments like chemotherapy and radiation became obsolete − which they most certainly would if real cancer cures were identified and released publicly.
I personally evaluated Movember’s “Our Funding Strategy” page to see what I could find about what this organization does with its millions of dollars in donations. What I discovered is that Movember invests in programs that focus on getting more men to sign up for treatment after they’ve already been diagnosed with cancer.
Movember is also committed to breaking some of the more “macho” stereotypes that it claims impede men from seeking medical treatment when they feel ill, either physically or mentally. But this is followed up by even more crafty verbiage about how to break what the organization sees as men’s impetuous resistance to follow through with conventional cancer treatments that both you and I know can be harmful.
In other words, men aren’t as easily swayed as women are to sign up for chemotherapy, radiation, and pharmaceutical drug treatments when they’re diagnosed with a serious illness like cancer − or so the implication goes. Thus, Movember is investing in strategic partnerships that it hopes will bring in more male customers for cancer treatment.
“We’re accelerating research to give men the best possible outcome after their diagnosis,” the page on prostate cancer reads. “We’re investing in initiative that … [t]rial and implement ways to improve the lives of men from diagnosis through to treatment, decision-making, active recovery and wellbeing.”
How are men supposed to avoid dying from preventable causes if Movember won’t explain to them how
to engage in preventative lifestyle and dietary habits? It’s the
epitome of hypocrisy and doublespeak, and something that’s endemic
within the cancer industry. Teaching people how to avoid disease isn’t profitable, so the goal is to indoctrinate people about how to respond after they develop a disease. This, of course, involves signing up for expensive and often ineffective treatments.
Our goal here at The Truth About Cancer, of course, is to help you avoid becoming a victim to this money-making racket. Whether you’re a woman being pressured to undergo routine mammograms for breast cancer, or a man being badgered to trade in your masculinity card for pills and poisons, the system isn’t looking out for your best interests.
Movember might be an effective campaign if it taught men the basics about anti-cancer foods and herbs like mushrooms and garlic, for instance. Or perhaps how to reduce cancer-causing inflammation by avoiding pro-inflammatory foods like refined sugar, cooking oils, and alcohol. Instead, this organization and others like it are peddling a reactionary approach that leaves men vulnerable to cancer, only to later funnel them into a failed disease management system that actually robs them of health, vitality, and wellbeing.
Cancer is probably the most prominent feature of this ever-expanding awareness blitz, with October’s Breast Cancer Awareness Month for women now succeeded by November’s No-Shave “Movember” for men. Guys everywhere are now being asked to ditch the razor in favor of a mustache during this Thanksgiving month. This is supposed to raise awareness about testicular, prostate, and other forms of male cancer that are said to be on the rise throughout the industrialized world.
There’s a sort of sentimental satisfaction that comes with hopping onboard this awareness bandwagon. “If it supports finding a cure, count me in!” is the general sentiment held by many. But does layering up in shades of pink and neglecting smooth skin really do anything to fight the growing epidemic of cancer? A closer look at the facts spotlights a whole lot of focus on money with these campaigns, with very little attention directed towards finding actual cures.
Cancer Awareness Campaigns are Big Business
I fully recognize that people embrace these types of awareness campaigns because they truly believe that by doing so they’re supporting a good cause. And having lost several family members to cancer myself, I’m quite familiar with that nagging urgency to do something, anything, that might further society along in its quest for tangible solutions to the cancer epidemic.The problem lies in the fact that campaigns like Movember are more about generating cash flow than they are about finding cures. Much like Susan G. Komen for the Cure, which I’ve addressed in previous articles dealing with breast cancer, the Movember organization funnels quite a bit of cash into superfluous and largely undefined “research” endeavors. And, upon closer analysis, these mostly cover a lot of people’s salaries in the ever-burgeoning, multi-billion dollar cancer industry.
Are these folks really interested in finding cures for cancer? Some of them might be. But the bigger priority in all this seems to be sustaining job security. Quite frankly this wouldn’t be an option in the event that expensive cancer treatments like chemotherapy and radiation became obsolete − which they most certainly would if real cancer cures were identified and released publicly.
Movember Doesn’t Want You Cured; It Just Wants You to Survive Chemotherapy and Radiation!
If you’ve been following our website for any length of time, you already know that real cancer cures do exist. Most of them, however, are suppressed by the conventional cancer industry − which includes organizations like the Movember Foundation. If you peruse the Movember website, you’ll quickly notice that this organization not once mentions anything about curing any sort of cancer, and this should immediately raise some serious red flags in your mind.I personally evaluated Movember’s “Our Funding Strategy” page to see what I could find about what this organization does with its millions of dollars in donations. What I discovered is that Movember invests in programs that focus on getting more men to sign up for treatment after they’ve already been diagnosed with cancer.
Movember is also committed to breaking some of the more “macho” stereotypes that it claims impede men from seeking medical treatment when they feel ill, either physically or mentally. But this is followed up by even more crafty verbiage about how to break what the organization sees as men’s impetuous resistance to follow through with conventional cancer treatments that both you and I know can be harmful.
In other words, men aren’t as easily swayed as women are to sign up for chemotherapy, radiation, and pharmaceutical drug treatments when they’re diagnosed with a serious illness like cancer − or so the implication goes. Thus, Movember is investing in strategic partnerships that it hopes will bring in more male customers for cancer treatment.
“We’re accelerating research to give men the best possible outcome after their diagnosis,” the page on prostate cancer reads. “We’re investing in initiative that … [t]rial and implement ways to improve the lives of men from diagnosis through to treatment, decision-making, active recovery and wellbeing.”
The One Thing Movember Doesn’t Discuss That Would Actually Help Men
Missing from this equation is any talk of prevention. Movember’s 20-page “Our Impact Investment Strategy” document doesn’t even contain the word prevention at all. Only in the very last line of the report under the definition for the word “Longer” does Movember present an afterthought about helping men to not die from “preventable causes.”How are men supposed to avoid dying from preventable causes if Movember won’t explain to them how
to engage in preventative lifestyle and dietary habits? It’s the
epitome of hypocrisy and doublespeak, and something that’s endemic
within the cancer industry. Teaching people how to avoid disease isn’t profitable, so the goal is to indoctrinate people about how to respond after they develop a disease. This, of course, involves signing up for expensive and often ineffective treatments.Our goal here at The Truth About Cancer, of course, is to help you avoid becoming a victim to this money-making racket. Whether you’re a woman being pressured to undergo routine mammograms for breast cancer, or a man being badgered to trade in your masculinity card for pills and poisons, the system isn’t looking out for your best interests.
Movember might be an effective campaign if it taught men the basics about anti-cancer foods and herbs like mushrooms and garlic, for instance. Or perhaps how to reduce cancer-causing inflammation by avoiding pro-inflammatory foods like refined sugar, cooking oils, and alcohol. Instead, this organization and others like it are peddling a reactionary approach that leaves men vulnerable to cancer, only to later funnel them into a failed disease management system that actually robs them of health, vitality, and wellbeing.
We rely on health heroes like you to help us spread the word on this important, life saving information. Please share it with friends below.
Article Summary
- On the heels of Breast Cancer Awareness Month in October comes November’s No-Shave “Movember” for men. This is a month when guys are asked to ditch the razor in favor of a mustache to raise awareness about testicular, prostate, and other forms of male cancer.
- While many men support the effort because they believe it’s a good cause, a closer look at the facts reveals these campaigns put very little attention towards finding actual cures.
- Movember invests in programs that focus on getting more men to sign up for treatment after they’ve already been diagnosed with cancer.
- Teaching people how to avoid disease isn’t profitable, so the goal is to indoctrinate people about how to respond after they develop a disease. This involves signing up for expensive and often ineffective treatments.
- Sadly, this organization and others like it are peddling a reactionary approach that leaves men vulnerable to cancer, only to later funnel them into a failed disease management system that actually robs them of health, vitality, and wellbeing.
No comments:
Post a Comment