I don't watch a lot of TV shows, and many of them don't even have commercials. But some of the programs that I do catch seem to be aimed at folks with a particular litigious streak - based on the numerous ads I see from law firms seeking to magnanimously help cancer victims. If heaven forbid a person should contract cancer as the result of some long-term and known carcinogenic via a determinable source, then by all means they should be compensated for this horrific outcome (ie: Erin Brockovich).
I didn't drink too much diet soda (for the record: being obese actually is what CAN increase your risk for post-menopausal breast, colorectal, uterine, kidney and pancreatic cancers). I never did develop a tolerance for or interest in smoking cigarettes (the seeds of origin and that connection to cancer is fairly well established). I'm not much of a drinker (researchers have found that excessive or long-term alcohol consumption causes chemical and other physical changes in our bodies that make cancers more likely). And being a fair-haired, light skin "lobster boy" - sitting in the sun all day to build up my bronze has just never been a summertime pursuit. So you can cross off the four main preventable risk factors for contracting some kind of cancer.
One day, Multiple Myeloma was caused in my system by a genetic mutation that allowed my cells to divide and grow in a disorganized way. It sounds pretty simple when I say it like that, though it really was a fluke and bizarre scientific occurrence that forged my fate. In the end, I don't have anyone or anything to blame for my unfortunate circumstance. Though "blame" is not one of Kubler-Ross' - 5 Stages of Grief (perhaps it should be), even if it were, I have nothing to point to to help explain the inexplicable, or rationalize the irrational.
So, I won't be featured anytime soon on a commercial extolling my gratitude for a huge settlement. Rather, like so many other aspects of acceptance associated with my state of affairs, I'll just grin and bear it - and save my litigation for a case that I can actually win.
