Scott Schmeltzer, Thanks for Listening

Cancer, according to Google Health, is the uncontrolled growth of abnormal cells in the body. Cancerous cells are also called malignant cells. The branch of medicine concerned with the study, diagnosis, treatment and prevention of cancer is oncology.

We are at war with cancer. It is a huge war that has taken more people than all of the wars we have ever fought combined.

Eight million people died of cancer worldwide last year. That number is slated to increase to 11.5 million by the year 2030.

Counting (unofficially) from the Revolutionary War until our current war in Afghanistan and Iraq, we have lost 1,317,787 U.S. soldiers in battle.

So just ball parking numbers that would be:

All of our wars combined — 1.3 million over many years.

Cancer — 8 million in a single year.

Cancer sucks, plain and simple.

Last week I posted on Facebook that Sept. 10 was punch cancer in the face day and the responses I received were overwhelming.

I do not know a single person cancer has not touched in some way. Think about your life. Do you know a cousin, uncle, grandparent, neighbor or a friend who has suffered from cancer?

I bet you do.

Tonight we will be having a benefit for my friend Geri because of cancer. Last week my aunt Rochelle died of cancer.

This year, we have lost 569,490 loved ones in the United States and the year is not even over.

Cancer makes me angry.

Cancer has no agenda other than it attacks our loved ones. It takes from us the people we love most. I am so tired of hearing about this disease as it takes our young, our elderly, our middle-aged, our everyone. Cancer is the one thing that politicians both on the left and on the right agree on, and they agree that it is a terrible disease.

I have personally spoken to and looked into a balding young child’s eyes that had leukemia and after talking a bit more, left the room and openly wept as I thought of my own young children. I made sure that this beautiful child was not in earshot of me because I wanted that youngster to keep the faith.

Faith that she would get better.

Faith that her life would be longer.

Faith that we would find a cure.

I again looked on as this same little girl watched fireworks go off in the sky. She sat with my little girl and they talked and laughed. I again had to leave. I am a strong man, but watching an innocent little girl fighting for her life is about too much for me to take.

I prayed for that little girl.

I also thanked God that my little girl did not have leukemia.

I will keep praying, but I want to find a cure.

We need to cure cancer in our lifetime.

We need to make to make an effort.

We need to have faith.

Tribune Publisher Scott Schmeltzer’s column appears every Thursday.