Who'd a thunk it?

Below is a news story that I just recently became aware of, although it's apparently been out for a few months.

If the findings stand up to further scrutinizing and testing, then this is just another nail in the coffin of the alternative sexual acts and/or lifestyles crowd.

One other thing it is, if proven true, is yet another example of one of the many, MANY lies that modern men and women are fed in all areas of life.

Think about it. Everything from eating nutritious, life-sustaining food, to fiscal responsibility, to the simple, wonderful act of (non-sodomal) sex between a man and a woman (preferably...and preferably married to each other, not to mention monogamously) has been subverted and perverted from its original intent to make a buck off of the manipulation of those basic human needs/desires.

Take, for example, sex. The purveyors of porn are out there to make money; the damage they do does not concern them, and perhaps they are right. After all, in a free society folks can choose to use porn or not. But that does not mean that porn is a harmless diversion.

The true damage that porn does is not that it will cause some individuals with a marginal grasp on sanity to commit horrid acts, although I've no doubt that does happen. No, the true damage porn performs is much more subtle and far-reaching. Simply put, pornography raises expectations to a degree that's all out of proportion to reality, especially in those most susceptible and likely to view it--the young. But porn's damage is not only limited to that group. Even middle-age adults are negatively influenced by porn. When viewed by these groups, they begin to think they are missing something in life and start to look at their own sex lives with a jaundiced eye, which can and does undermine otherwise perfectly good relationships. They may begin to think that if the sex they are getting isn't constant, hot, ever-better, and always over-the-top, just like in porn, perhaps who they are with isn't the right person for them. Instead of viewing sex as just a part of life and a committed relationship, they overrate it and make it the measure of life itself, and few even realize they are doing this, at least until it's too late.

Meanwhile, the porn purveyors keep raking in millions whilst spreading discontent, not to mention disease (see below) across the world.

They say that with age comes wisdom. I've got the age part, now I think I'm getting the wisdom.

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Oral sex linked to throat cancer

A virus contracted through oral sex is the cause of some throat cancers, say US scientists.


HPV infection was found to be a much stronger risk factor than tobacco or alcohol use, the Johns Hopkins University study of 300 people found.

The New England Journal of Medicine study said the risk was almost nine times higher for people who reported oral sex with more than six partners.


But experts said a larger study was needed to confirm the findings.

HPV infection is the cause of the majority of cervical cancers, and 80% of sexually active women can expect to have an HPV infection at some point in their lives.


The Johns Hopkins study took blood and saliva from 100 men and women newly diagnosed with oropharyngeal cancer which affects the throat, tonsils and back of the tongue.

They also asked questions about sex practices and other risk factors for the disease, such as family history.


Those who had evidence of prior oral HPV infection had a 32-fold increased risk of throat cancer.

HPV16 - one of the most common cancer-causing strains of the virus - was present in the tumours of 72% of cancer patients in the study.


Risk factors

There was no added risk for people infected with HPV who also smoked and drank alcohol, suggesting the virus itself is driving the risk of the cancer.


Oral sex was said to be the main mode of transmission of HPV but the researchers said mouth-to-mouth transmission, for example through kissing, could not be ruled out.

Most HPV infections clear with little or no symptoms but a small percentage of people who acquired high-risk strains may develop a cancer, the researchers added.


Study author Dr Gypsyamber D'Souza said: "It is important for health care providers to know that people without the traditional risk factors of tobacco and alcohol use can nevertheless be at risk of oropharyngeal cancer."

Co-researcher Dr Maura Gillison said previous research by the team had suggested there was a strong link.


But she added: "People should be reassured that oropharyngeal cancer is relatively uncommon and the overwhelming majority of people with an oral HPV infection probably will not get throat cancer."

A vaccine which protects against cervical cancer caused by HPV strains 6, 11, 16 and 18, and also against genital warts is available and the researchers said the study provided a rationale for vaccinating both girls and boys.


But whether the vaccine would protect against oral HPV infection is not yet known.

Dr Julie Sharp, science information officer at Cancer Research UK, said: "There is conflicting evidence about the role of HPV, and this rare type of mouth cancer.

"As this was a small study, further research is needed to confirm these observations."


"We know that after age, the main causes of mouth cancer are smoking or chewing tobacco or betel nut, and drinking too much alcohol."


Story from BBC NEWS:http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/1/hi/health/6639461.stm
Published: 2007/05/10 07:40:47 GMT
© BBC MMVII
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Take care.
DAL357