With many years’ experience as a specialist oncology nurse, I have always felt strongly that it is not appropriate to describe a cancer experience with words associated with war (combat, battle, fight). Who has a choice with cancer? But what words should we use instead? Grace Dent described it well for me (British grief centres mainly around the making of sandwiches, 19 February). “Covid monster” and “ghoulish cousin, cancer” seems much more fitting – thank you.
Ann Davis
Sutton, Cheshire
• Your report on the fatberg in the London sewer (Workers clear ‘huge, disgusting’ fatberg from London sewer, 1920 February) says that it was ‘the weight of a small bungalow”. Until now, I never imagined that anybody had actually calculated the weight of a bungalow, so let’s be knowing – how did they do it, why, and what weight did they come up with?
David Evans
Market Harborough, Leicestershire
• Crosswords getting harder (Letters, 21 February)? I’m still trying to figure out how the nine-letter word in last Thursday’s word wheel was given as overheard when the letters were AIORCNEND.
Judith Silverman
Ruislip, London
• In a graphic in your print edition (The way out of lockdown: Which way will Johnson jump?, 20 February), you contrast six “cautious voices” with those of six of the “brakes off brigade”. It is instructive that not one of the latter group claims any qualification in medicine, epidemiology or even statistics.
Chris Theobald
Edinburgh
• I can put Zoe Williams and her uncle out of their misery (The Zoom boom is horrible. I can no longer look at my face for hours on end, 22 February): open menu, select “Hide self”. Job done.
Paul Dennehy
Enfield, London
