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The original was posted on /r/singularity by /u/DreamFly_13 on 2024-01-14 05:55:54+00:00.
A month ago, I was diagnosed with Grade 3 Astrocytoma (Brain cancer ; Grade 3 means advanced). I felt symptoms for years before I had the chance to get tested. The Doctor used to tell me that I was simply an anxious person and I have nothing to worry about. My peers were telling me the same thing. I felt like an hypochondriac for such a long time. Sometimes I repressed all those emotions to not sound crazy to other people. After a while, my symptoms grew worst and at some point my doctor gave up and agreed to let me get an MRI scan. Well, it turned out I was right and have been diagnosed with Anaplastic Astrocytoma.
Most cancers can be treated extremely well when it’s in its early stage. The issue is that many people are diagnosed years after the chronic symptoms started to appear. If we could find a way to test people not only on a global scale but also regularly, we could lower the risk of death and suffering from cancer to next to zero. If I had gotten an MRI scan earlier, the cancer would’ve been discovered in its early stage and avoided me from a lot of pain and suffering. Unfortunately, im at a pretty severe stage and it’s going to take a lot of radiation and chemotherapy.
I shouldn’t fight tooth and nail to simply get tested for something that worried me for so long. I’m aware its easier said than done since its hard for logistics to support something of this scale, but if we could find a way to test people faster and make it as accessible as getting a vaccine, it could save so many lives. Imagine getting scanned whenever you want. No more "you’re an hypochondriac". You just get tested, you see the results and you move on. Or what if you could get a test from a small device that could fit inside your pocket? It sounds insane but in the future it might be possible.
This subreddit made realize how fast AI is developing and I hope one day and it can fully cure me. I just wish we could find a way to accelerate the process of scanning and to pinpoint the cause of symptoms accurately. I hope these new technologies can find a way to reduce suffering for everyone.