I'm in a stable relationship now but I spent a few years entrenched in the dating scene and though I look somewhat fondly on my days of single freedom, I still shudder at the bad things about dating -- awkward silences, clumsy first kisses, realizing that you have no chemistry and you still have two more courses of conversation to fill. But we still put up with all of this because by nature, we want to find that someone. We know they're out there, somewhere.

Considering how difficult the dating scene was on someone like average like me, I can't imagine how hard dating would be for those who are un-average--those who are ill or disabled or disfigured. In a world where outwardly appearances and 'fitting in' are so important, how do you meet people who won't mind that you come with a few flaws?

A new and official report shows cancer is the leading cause of death and disability in Australia.

The Australian Institute of Health and Welfare reveals that cancer is taking more lives -- about 19 percent -- than cardiovascular disease, currently at 18 percent. Cancer is the now to blame for Australia's burden of disease, according to the report, and the disease doesn't appear to be slowing anytime soon.

Burden of disease refers to not only mortality but also takes into account impact of illness and disability. Essentially, this means cancer takes away from healthy life years.

Some employers are understanding while others are not so accommodating when it comes to an employee's need for a more flexible schedule or time off from work while they undergo the rigors of chemotherapy, surgeries and other cancer treatments. According to the Disability Rights Legal Center at Loyola Law School, cancer can be considered a disability, and cancer patients treated unfairly have remedies through laws that protect the disabled.

"In fact, people with cancer face a lot of employment discrimination," states Eve Hill of the Disability Rights Legal Center. Barbara Schwerin, who heads the Cancer Legal Resource Center, estimates they get about 300 calls from cancer patients each month. Because of the extreme fatigue, and other disabling side effects a cancer patient can suffer from cancer surgeries and treatments, patients often worry if they will lose their job in the process. Schwerin reassures them that they often have legal rights that will protect them from less understanding employers. Really, the last thing a cancer patient needs to worry about -- while they are fighting to stay alive and survive cancer -- is whether they will have a job or a roof over their heads and food in the pantry.