But the banality is not what bugged me. It is the cynicism, hopelessness and apathy that I hear in it. People have heard so much about cancer research that they don't believe it anymore. They don't think that they're going to learn anything useful, so they just tune out. To avoid EVERYTHING that has been implicated in causing cancer, you would have to kill yourself. As long as you live and breathe, you are taking in and producing carcinogens. Since avoidance of causal agents is completely impossible, people get cycnical about it.

I suppose that is the case with some people. But I am not cynical. I do everything I can to avoid carcinogens. I'm just sick of hearing it, probably as sick as you are of hearing "everything causes cancer", and my remark was not intended as sarcasm, but rather was stating the facts as I see them. As you list in your post, "everything" has the potential of causing cancer, and our modern lifestyle and horrible eating habits make it prolific.

But, as you requested, the next time I have an opinion that goes against your grain, I'll keep it to myself. :-)