Lee Hye-young urges care for lung cancer patients

Actor Lee Hye-young expressed concern over social prejudice toward lung cancer patients and urged people to choose their words carefully.

In a video released on July 16 on her YouTube channel 'Hye-young Cannot Be Stopped,' Lee visited her hometown of Incheon and spent time reading stories from fans. She responded to a viewer who said they developed lung cancer from stress while working at a large company, even though they did not smoke.

Lee said, 'There are really many people who get lung cancer even though they are nonsmokers,' and added, 'You can get lung cancer even if you do not smoke.' She also said it is not only heavy drinkers who get stomach cancer, nor only people with constipation who get colon cancer, and shared her personal view that stress seems to cause cancer in the weakest part of the body.

Addressing how patients are seen by others, Lee said she hoped people would never look at someone with lung cancer and think, 'Was that person a heavy smoker?' or 'Did they smoke a lot?' She added, 'Every sick person is hurting physically, but they are also hurting emotionally. I hope people do not say things that wound someone who is ill.'

Lee was diagnosed with early-stage lung cancer in 2021 and underwent lung resection surgery. She is currently managing her health through follow-up observation, has recently regained her strength and started YouTube activities, and said she wants to deliver hope to people going through pain similar to her own.