I’m facing the prospect of going back to work in July, but need some advice. I hope there are some knowledgeable ladies out there who can reassure me.
My work involves working in front of computers all day. Since I was dx, some of my friends and families have been trying to find a “simple cause” for my BC. Unfortunately, some of them pointed their fingers at the radiation from my computers at work. I’m not surprised by this reaction because there has been news report in the pass about people linking cancer to radiation from mobile phone masks. However, if I believe it, that means I will need to change my career, which I am not prepared to do at this stage. Without computers, how could we access wonderful and supportive sites like this one?
I know this can be a very controvasial subject. But if you knowledgeable ladies know any research in this area, that would be great.
I have never heard any evidence to suggest radiation from computers causes cancer. You would think with the number of people who use computers daily there would be some link shown up by now if that was the case. I too sit in front of a computer all the time at my work -I also work night shift and there is some evidence that that can cause bc. Either way I am back at work full time after a diagnosis of bone mets.
I don’t think there is a simple cause for our cancers as we are all so different and lead different lives - if they knew the cause it would help find the cure. It is only natural for our loved ones and ourselves to look for a cause or something to blame but I don’t think there is an answer to that it is very complex.
I hope someone comes along soon with a more ‘research’ head then me but wishing you well in your decision. I am certainly pleased that I returned to work for the normality as well as the financial benefits it gives me.
Sorry I cannot offer you any helpful research but I can offer my personal experience. I used to work full-time in front of computers. I started to get face pain (redness and tingling sensations under the skin) which didn’t go away. I suffered it for quite a long time (couple of years) as my GP couldn’t get to the route of the problem. I eventually went for a brain scan which didn’t show up anything suspicious. We moved from England to Scotland and I didn’t work for six months and guess what, my face pain left me. It has become clear to me that working in a environment which has dry heat and lots of computer equipment, printers etc is not a suitable working environment for me. I wonder if there was a link would we be told about it at this stage? My advice to anyone working with computers would be to take short breaks, get away from them at lunch-time and make sure they are situated in the correct position in order not to get exposure from the sun etc.
I will be interested to see what others have to say on this subject.
Hi, I think all of us at one point try to look for the reason why !!! But I think it´s a combination of lots of things, it´s our lifestyle, not just computers, alcohol, smoking etc, the list is endless.
I went through a stage of looking WHY and to be honest i still think there is alot in the water we drink it is full of toxic chemicals chlorine being one, somedays you can smell and taste it in the water, I live in a small community in spain, I worked at a local hotel, and there alone 4 of us staff have been dx with cancer.
I have spoke to lots of people with cancer and we all seem to look for the reason why, my oncologist told me to take everthing and enjoy within moderation.
It’s great to get a balanced view on this because this can really help me to make the “right” decision.
Thanks Jennie for the advice about working with computers. I have been called a “gadget girl” because I just couldn’t put fancy electronics down once I’ve picked them up! I guess this can be considered as my lifestyle as meantioned by Muffett.
My onc didn’t think computer is a safty hazard, either.
A few more of your views, experiences or advice are welcome. Maybe this can be considered as my own “research” if none has been conducted by the experts.
They have been blaming computers for all sorts for years - back in the mid 80s they were trying to say they gave off gamma rays that made women have miscarriages. I worked in a foreign bank in London back then and we had pregnant ladies refusing to work on the computers because they had read scare stories. My SiL has claimed for years that her bad skin was caused by working on a VDU 25 years ago. Quite simply, she has got bad skin because she is 6 stones overweight and for years her diet has been shocking. Sadly she got a wake up call about this recently when she was diagnosed with bowel cancer and had to have half of her colon removed.
Computers are a fact of life - I can’t get away from it as I’m a project assistant in web development so they earn me my living.