“I’m one of the lucky ones.”

That’s how survivor Dwight Lewis begins his very moving recent column in the Tennessean. He wrote it because Brian Todd of the Metro Health Department reports that, “in spite of living in the information age, cancer is still a fearful, stigmatized disease in communities of color, and people simply don’t talk about it.”

I’m one of the lucky ones too — but for very different reasons. Not only have I never had cancer, I’m less likely to get it. And if I do, I’m more likely to catch it early.

The reason is quite simple. I’m informed. And once I understand what can be done, I’m more likely to do it.

In my case, I’m surrounded by fabulous information. That’s because I’m the web coordinator for the Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center. But it’s almost as easy for others to get access to this information, and I’m going to make it even easier by doing a series of tips in this blog.

Todd reports that people aren’t talking about it. While this is more of a problem in communities of color, death and cancer still aren’t exactly popular subjects in my non-work circles.

So, it’s time to get talking about cancer. For now, let me suggest you read Lewis’ piece: Barriers to progress against cancer begin with silence.