He was diagnosed in 1982 with peritoneal mesothelioma, a cancer affecting the abdominal lining. People with this type of cancer are given this statistic--50% of you will die within 8 months of your diagnosis.
Gould's article, The Median Isn't the Message, provides another way of looking at these numbers. Statistical averages, while useful in presenting data, do not reveal the potentially large variations and wide array of possibilities among individuals. Never underestimate the will to live. Never deny that hope and joy can play a huge role in survival.
Gould was an evolutionary biologist who taught at Harvard. I tell you this because as much as I enjoy his writing, sometimes he is just too smart for me. Nonetheless the points he makes are quite clear:
- When interpreting the data on a particular kind of cancer, keep in mind your age, your general health, stage at which the cancer was caught, family support system, general attitude about life.
- And remember -- you are not a number! You are far more complex - with a unique history and set of circumstances.
- Having hope and keeping joy in your life will help.
Sadly, Stephen Jay Gould passed away in 2002 of adenocarcinoma of the lung. For Gould, his prognosis of 8 months to live became 20 years of life.
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