<body><div><figure><img src="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?type=thumbnail_580x000&amp;url=1P2kKk_0vjGwaXj00" alt="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=1P2kKk_0vjGwaXj00" width="980" height="653" ><figcaption>Jeff Deminski</figcaption></figure>When I was a kid, older folks didn’t even want to say the word cancer out loud. Sometimes, you would hear “the big C.” It was the Voldemort of something that could strike you down.Of course, huge advances have been made. We haven’t beaten the many forms of cancer, but science has given them a run for their money. Yet, it remains scary. In the United States, lung cancer totals more than 200,000 new cases per year, with 125,000 deaths. New cases of colon cancer hit about 150,000 people a year and kill roughly 50,000 of them.With all science has learned, there’s still more that we don’t know. Things like genetics, diet, and exercise can play a role. But what about where you live?The rest of the country pictures New Jersey as nothing but smokestacks and factories. You would think living near them certainly can’t be good for your health.That’s why a breakdown of cancer rates in all 21 counties of our state might come as a surprise. I grew up in Union County, not far from exit 13A on the New Jersey Turnpike. Land of factories and chemical plants. My guess would be Union County would rank high in cancer cases.Well, I was surprised. It wasn't neatly at the top. Scroll through this ranking of cancer rates in all 21 counties in the Garden State. It was put together by Stacker. I was floored at No. 1.Opinions expressed in the post above are those of New Jersey 101.5 talk show host Jeff Deminski only. <a href="mailto:trenton.dme@townsquaremedia.com?subject=Feedback%20or%20correction">Report a correction</a> 👈</div></body>

Mountain View, CA

NewsBreak

NJ counties with the highest cancer rates may shock you

When I was a kid, older folks didn’t even want to say the word cancer out loud. Sometimes, you would hear “the big C.” It was the Voldemort of something that could strike you down. Of course, huge advances have been made. We haven’t beaten the many...