My Theory on the Death of Susan Wojcicki (ex-CEO of Youtube)

She died of lung cancer earlier this year at age 56 despite never having been a smoker and leading an active lifestyle.

The youtube version

Earlier this year I’d found about the death of Susan Wojcicki like everyone else.

And as I’m in the tech field and a pretty big user of Youtube, she’s someone who I knew about.

Her story with cancer was interesting because she was so young and because she got lung cancer as a non-smoker. Apparently ~20% of lung cancer patients are non-smokers.

In any case it made me think about the true root causes of lung cancer as I’ve had some experiences that give me an atypical angle into this.

And so while some of you may view what I write below as a ‘reach’… i have a feeling the science is gonna back me up one day.

Who is Susan Wojcicki?

Susan Wojcicki was one of tech's most influential leaders, known as the former CEO of YouTube and one of Google's earliest employees - famously renting her garage to Larry Page and Sergey Brin when they founded Google.

She helped build Google's advertising business and led YouTube's growth to become the world's largest video platform.

A mother of five, she was known for advocating for work-life balance and women in tech.

She was the superwoman that seemed to be able to have her cake and eat it too. Having both an awesome career and great family life.

Her diagnosis of lung cancer

At age 55, Wojcicki was diagnosed with a rare form of lung cancer, despite never having smoked and maintaining an active lifestyle.

She stepped down as YouTube CEO in February 2023 to focus on her health and family.

Despite treatment, she passed away in February 2024 at age 56.

Sundar Pichai, the CEO of Google, led her tribute with:

“Unbelievably saddened by the loss of my dear friend Susan Wojcicki after two years of living with cancer. She is as core to the history of Google as anyone, and it’s hard to imagine the world without her. She was an incredible person, leader and friend who had a tremendous impact on the world and I’m one of countless Googlers who is better for knowing her. We will miss her dearly. Our thoughts with her family. RIP Susan,”

Her case joins a growing number of non-smokers developing lung cancer, challenging the traditional understanding of the disease.

A quick structural scan of her

Her structure at 56 was probably average or even a bit better than average for her age.

But her body and skull are clearly compensated a bit.

I do not know if she had orthodontic work but her skull is shaped such that i wouldnt be surprised if she had braces as a teen.

All-in-all… I can’t really say much from seeing her. You see people all around you everyday that look like her and are healthy.

My theory on what happened

I believe lung cancer's relationship to structural health might be more significant than currently understood.

I believe when structure is compromised, the lungs may lose their ability to effectively clear foreign particles.

This could explain why some non-smokers develop lung cancer (eg. Susan) while some heavy smokers live long lives .

My grandfather was a prime example of this… he had great structure with a massive, relatively symmetric skull and he lived to 94 years old while smoking two packs of Lucky Strikes a day for most of his adult life. And still didn’t die of lung cancer.

Now let me tell you why I think this happens.

What has led me to this theory

On several occasions over the last few years as I’ve been recovering, I've experienced periods of a dry cough that lasts for weeks.

I have it right now for example. If you’re watching my Youtube videos closely, you might even catch me coughing occasionally (my editor cuts most of it out).

But I don’t get sick and it feels as though when I cough I’m clearing crap out of my lungs. Crap that has probably been gathering up there for years.

When coughing it also feels as if I am stretching my lungs back out and there is a sort of dull pain to it. I even start to feel like i’m breathing better/clearer.

Sometimes I also feel a pressure in my chest as if something is moving and then awhile later ill see lines on my chest as if something had in fact moved.

Importantly, these clearing episodes only happen during periods of structural improvement, never during decline. And my hypothesis is that this is because the body's ability to trap or clear particles might be structurally dependent.

Also note that in a lot of the ‘worst cases’ of lung cancer like the ones they put on cigarette cartons.. the people are missing lots of teeth. And i’m sorry.. but I do not think you lose teeth because of smoking. You lose them because of structural issues.

Smoker's lung vs. normal lung

The classic black lungs seen in smokers might tell only part of the story.

We typically only see lungs post-mortem, but I suspect people with excellent structural health are probably keeping their lungs relatively clear despite smoking. But we’re never seeing the fact that their lungs look ok because they do not die.

Let’s also look at a few famous cases of folks that died of lung cancer:

Paul Newman was a known smoker earlier in his life but quit in the 1980s. Despite quitting, he succumbed to lung cancer decades later.

George Harrison was a heavy smoker for much of his life and then reportedly quit in the late 1980s. But died of complications in 2001.

Think about it for a second… if it was the smoke that was the main culprit than why didn’t they die while they were actually smoking?

Rather they died decades later of lung cancer despite living a healthy life. Don’t the ‘experts’ say that your lungs should start clearing after you quit? I know that was what i was told many years back.

And I think that’s bs. I think a lot of crap gets trapped in your lungs when you smoke, or even just in your daily life (which is probably what happened to Susan), and then as you do more structural damage later…. eventually there is too much crap stuck in there and lung cancer results.

Closing thoughts

Wojcicki's death at a relatively young age, despite her healthy lifestyle, clearly shows in my view the limitations of our current understanding of cancer.

If structural health indeed influences the body's ability to clear harmful particles, it could revolutionize our approach to preventing and treating lung cancer.

Rather than focusing solely on exposure to carcinogens, we might need to consider how improving a person’s structure could enhance the body's natural cleaning mechanisms.

I know that’s the way it feels to me right now. And that’s why one of the phrases I coined for this is…

“It’s not what goes in that causes the problems… it’s what doesnt come out.”