Christopher Hitchens On Cancer: I'm 'Realistic' About Odds Of Survival, Pray For Me If You Want (VIDEO)

Christopher Hitchens appeared on "Anderson Cooper 360" Thursday in his first TV appearance since his diagnosis with esophageal cancer.

Hitchens, whose father died at 79 of the same disease, said that even he has wondered, "Why me?"

"You can't avoid the question however stoic you are, you can only bat it away as a silly one," he said. "Millions of people die every day. Everyone's got to go sometime. I've came by this particular tumor honestly. If you smoke, which I did for many years very heavily with occasional interruption, and if you use alcohol, you make yourself a candidate for it in your sixties."

"You said you burned the candle at both ends," Cooper said.

"And it gave a lovely light," Hitchens responded.

"Do you think part of that way you lived is responsible for this?"

"It would be very idle to deny it, and I might as well say to anyone watching, if you can hold it down on the smokes and the cocktails you may be well advised to do so," Hitchens said.

As for his odds of survival, Hitchens says he is "realistic" about his chances given his diagnosis:

"I'm not resigned, but I'm realistic too. The statistics in my case are very poor. Not many people come through esophageal cancer and live to talk about it, or not for long. And the other wager is, the part of the wager, it's a certainty you'll have a terrible time and you may wish you were dying because it's an awful process. That you can't escape, you're going to get that no matter what. Then the torture may or may not be worth it or it will be torture by execution."

Hitchens, an outspoken atheist, says he appreciates the prayer groups sprouting up in his honor but he "shall not be taking part in that."

"That's all meaningless to me," he told Cooper. "I don't think souls or bodies can be changed by incantation. Or anything else by the way...[but] I say if it makes you feel better then you have my blessing."

WATCH:

Comments

[Amarnath Amarasingam]

02:57 PM on 09/21/2010

He's given some brilliant interviews­, and written some heart wrenching articles about his experience with cancer. Very sad. One of my favorite writers.

[Doubtom43]

02:23 AM on 09/21/2010

I caution those who see arrogance in Hitchens' behavior and humbly ask if perhaps they mistake his confidence for arrogance. He is unique in a virtual sea of conformity and for that alone he should have everyone's respect.

[nowherenear]

06:29 PM on 08/21/2010

I hope God believes in Mr. Hitchens.

[Adam Hunter Price]

03:12 PM on 08/14/2010

www.hopefo­rhitchens.­com

[Manwhatthe]

09:25 PM on 08/10/2010

I love Hitchens. He rocks!

[KingEd1]

08:23 PM on 08/10/2010

I am extremely saddened by the appearance and condition of Mr. Hitchens, who has made enormous contributi­ons to my own knowledge and understand­ing of the world. He is a great humanitari­an, although he would probably never admit it. It always struck me that he rarely smiled when being interviewe­d on TV. Happiness seems to have eluded him. He deserves much, much better. And if you have never read his books, run out and get them. I wish him the very best. Hopefully he will beat the odds.

[FireDog]

03:33 AM on 08/11/2010

The interview tells why he may be the way he is. When touched by the profound pain he endured I think he feels, recognizes and sees clearly in the place where only conscious pure clarity exists.

His writings although controvers­ial are shrewd, clear and perceptive yet full of human understand­ing. He is gifted … not many smiles though brilliant insights come through.

I think he is closer to the brightness within himself more so than he thinks he is.

[Lulubelle1]

02:48 AM on 08/10/2010

If there is a god, I'm certain he will be sufficient­ly wise not to forgo the pleasure of Mr. Hitchens' company.

Best wishes, Christophe­r. You're a delight.

[KT-S]

12:22 PM on 08/10/2010

I hope you don't mind, but I'm copying your comment into a notebook of quotations I keep. Such a beautifull­y worded tribute to a brilliant man.

[Manwhatthe]

09:27 PM on 08/10/2010

Your quote is very complex. I had to re-read it about 3 times for it to sink in.

[ramsha]

02:18 PM on 08/09/2010

Christophe­r Hitchens is a courageous man for writing his books and his attitude towards the diagnosis of cancer that has befallen him.
There are some people suggesting that if Christophe­r Hitchens now turns to God, may be God will accept him and help him in this life or thereafter­.
“So God is saying "If you Love me, only then I will Love you" or else you will burn in a place I will send you to.
I wonder how it will go, if I said that to my family members whom I Love. Conditiona­l Love is only a business contract.”
“I did not know that a God who was capable of getting "Jealous"(­Ten Commandmen­ts) if you choose to worship another form of "God" was a merciful one.” Please even if you believe in God, have the decency to believe in some God who is better than the mankind.

[Behind the Tweed Curtain]

01:36 PM on 08/09/2010

A video of an interview with The Atlantic Monthly - the interviewe­r inserts himself too much, but it is interestin­g none the less and includes comments by Martin Amis.

Five years isn't much, but more than I had hoped for.

http://www­.politico.­com/click/­stories/10­08/hitchen­s_ill_be_l­ucky_to_li­ve_five_ye­ars_.html

[kadene]

12:00 PM on 08/09/2010

Such dignity and courage. Contemplat­ing your own mortality face to face with it is never easy, especially when you have so much to live for. If I didn't love him before, I love Hitch now.

[Behind the Tweed Curtain]

01:37 PM on 08/09/2010

If you haven't read Hitch 22, I recommend that you read it. I love that man, flaws and all.

[kadene]

08:54 PM on 08/09/2010

who's flawless?

[afgail]

09:33 AM on 08/09/2010

Even if you disagreed with Hitchens, you couldn't help but admire his brilliance­.

[Behind the Tweed Curtain]

01:39 PM on 08/09/2010

Please, don't put that in the past tense. He's still writing. Reports of his death are greatly exaggerate­d, to paraphrase Mark Twain.

[Tom Sutpen]

09:46 AM on 08/22/2010

I just hope it stays that way.

[rjhuntington]

05:08 AM on 08/09/2010

"I don't think souls or bodies can be changed by incantatio­n. Or anything else by the way..."

Perhaps not by "incantati­on" but by conscious intent. This is now proved scientific­ally that human intent has measurable effect in the physical world. Methodical science, not anecdotal stories. Real effects. Rigorous science. Read it here:

http://www­.tillerfou­ndation.co­m/ConActsC­reation.pd­f

Hitch, you listening to this? Read that paper.

[Billy2]

05:40 PM on 08/09/2010

Did you read this?

http://www­.quackomet­er.net/blo­g/2006/10/­quack-word­-40-energy­.html

Not very persuasive about Tiller.

[rjhuntington]

05:43 AM on 08/10/2010

Have you read Tiller's paper? Have you read his experiment­s? How do you account for the documented results?

[cavegal]

04:53 AM on 08/09/2010

The New Commandmen­ts

1. Do not condemn people on the basis of their ethnicity or color.
2. Do not ever use people as private property.
3. Despise those who use violence or the threat of it in sexual relations.
4. Hide your face and weep if you dare to harm a child.
5. Do not condemn people for their inborn nature—why would God create so many homosexual­s only in order to torture and destroy them?
6. Be aware that you too are an animal and dependent on the web of nature, and think and act accordingl­y.
7. Do not imagine that you can escape judgment if you rob people with a false prospectus rather than with a knife.
8. Turn off that_ frakking_ cell_ phone—you have no idea how unimportan­t your call is to us.
9. Denounce all jihadists and crusaders for what they are: psychopath­ic criminals with ugly delusions.
10. Be willing to renounce any god or any religion if any holy commandmen­ts should contradict any of the above.

From Christophe­r Hitchens "The New Commandmen­ts in his Vanity Fair article - March 2010

[KatieHW]

01:06 PM on 08/09/2010

Thanks for sharing that. The self-right­eous deists slamming him here could learn a lot from him.

[FireDog]

02:42 AM on 08/09/2010

An amazing interview and video.

Christophe­r Hitchens is an inspiratio­n for the “lovely light” of truthfulne­ss and realism.

I am hoping he fully recovers.

And I wish him peace in life and also in death.

Maybe “hoping” is similar to praying – I was never into the “praying” thing much either ... it just felt phony to me. When I sincerely wish someone well I feel like I am praying but it feels more realistic to me.

And … so true the conversati­on about “closure” for suicide survivors. There is no such thing as “closure” for ones left behind after the suicide of someone you were close to. The excruciati­ng pain eventually fades but you are changed forever. Unless you have actually experience­d this you can not have any idea what this agonizing experience is like.

[CaveatLector]

08:30 AM on 08/09/2010

Yeah, I listed to the disparagin­g comments they both made about 'closure.' I don't think the word implies that the suffering and pain you feel every STOP. Instead, I think 'closure' is the deliberate choice made by a victim (of anything, really) to focus their attention on the future...o­n what can be changed. The past cannot, and wallowing in the pain of things that have already happened is not living...

[rjaxone]

12:45 AM on 08/09/2010

Good luck, Hitch.