The (too much) power of the media

In my last update I touched on the idea that the media has created a certain idea of what dealing with cancer looks like. This is most prevalent in our TV soaps and dramas. After a year in Taiwan away from British TV shows, it hasn't taken long to get back into the familiar world of Eastenders and Coronation Street, both of which currently have very different cancer storylines. In Corrie we have Chris, who, like me, was diagnosed with a brain tumour. As an ex wife-beater, he is not really a character we can warm to, even the way he dealt with his illness was underhanded; first, playing on the sympathy vote ("it was the tumour that made me violent...")and his ex-wife back, then lying; when told things had improved "It's getting worse and I'm dying"), so she would stay with him. I watched this with interest (understandably), but found the response of the medical team even more unlikely. When the treatment ( I think he had radiothedrapy, but got confused, as he lost all of his hair (like a chemo patient- when I had radiotherapy, I only lost a small sexction on the side of the tumour...), he was told "You've got your life back". No Oncology nurse or doctor would ever say this. I am proof in point that there is rarely a complete cure of brain cancer, you have regular check ups indefinitely as there is such a big chance it'll come back. This is, of course, aside from the fact that most of us donn't want a sympathy vote or to be treated differently, just because we are ill.
The Eastenders storyline is different in that it concerns Tanya's fight against cervical cancer. Admittedly I know little about this type of cancer, although like many became more aware following the death of Jade Goody, which created a lot of (neesded) awareness for the disease. Tanya has three children (including one toddler), yet for unfathomable reasons is refusing chemo and radiotherapy, dispite being told she risks worsening her prognosis.
Ido think this is anexmple of a show choosing unrealistic behaviour purely for entertainment, rather than to inform. There are cases of people turning down treatment, but this is usually in cases, where the cancer is terminal, and treatment is only prolonging life (by a few months), rather than curing. In these cases I am full of respect