Cancer Types, Symptoms, Treatment Options and Information
Cancer has a reputation for being a deadly disease. While this certainly applies to certain particular types, the truths behind the historical connotations of cancer are increasingly being overturned by advances in medical care. Some types of cancer have a prognosis that is substantially better than nonmalignant diseases such as heart failure and stroke.
Cancer Definition - Begins when one cells changes and starts growing and dividing rapidly and out of control. This cell divides to give two cells, then four, eight etc. until they end up forming a growing mass of cancer cells called a tumor.
Cancer may affect people at all ages, even fetuses, but the risk for most varieties increases with age. Cancer causes about 13% of all deaths. According to the American Cancer Society, 7.6 million people died from cancer in the world during 2007.
There are more than 100 types of cancer, including breast cancer, skin cancer, lung cancer, colon cancer, prostate cancer, and lymphoma.
Metastasis Definition - The spread of a disease from one organ or part to another non-adjacent organ or part. They then begin to divide and grow again eventually forming a new tumor, called secondary tumors or metastases. Only malignant tumor cells and infections have the capacity to metastasize.
Malignant Definition - A medical term used to describe a severe and progressively worsening disease, mostly used as a description of cancer.
Benign Tumor Definition - A tumor that lacks the malignant properties of a cancer. A benign tumor does not grow in an unlimited, aggressive manner, does not invade surrounding tissues, and does not metastasize. Examples of benign tumors include moles and uterine fibroids.
Nearly all cancers are caused by abnormalities in the genetic material of the transformed cells. These abnormalities may be due to the effects of carcinogens, such as tobacco smoke, radiation, chemicals, or infectious agents. Other cancer-promoting genetic abnormalities may be randomly acquired through errors in DNA replication, or are inherited, and thus present in all cells from birth.
Cancer Symptoms and Treatment
Most cancers can be treated and some cured, depending on the specific type, location, and stage. Once diagnosed, cancer is usually treated with a combination of surgery, chemotherapy and radiotherapy. The choice of therapy depends upon the location and grade of the tumor and the stage of the disease, as well as the general state of the patient.
Radiation therapy - The use of ionizing radiation to kill cancer cells and shrink tumors. Radiation therapy can be administered externally via external beam radiotherapy (EBRT) or internally via brachytherapy.
Surgery - In theory, non-hematological cancers can be cured if entirely removed by surgery, but this is not always possible. When the cancer has metastasized to other sites in the body prior to surgery, complete surgical excision is usually impossible.
Chemotherapy - The treatment of cancer with drugs ("anticancer drugs") that can destroy cancer cells. In current usage, the term "chemotherapy" usually refers to cytotoxic drugs which affect rapidly dividing cells in general, in contrast with targeted therapy (see below). Chemotherapy drugs interfere with cell division in various possible ways, e.g. with the duplication of DNA or the separation of newly formed chromosomes.
Cancer symptoms can be generally divided into three groups:
Symptoms of metastasis (spreading): enlarged lymph nodes, cough and hemoptysis, hepatomegaly (enlarged liver), bone pain, fracture of affected bones and neurological symptoms. Although advanced cancer may cause pain, it is often not the first symptom.
Local symptoms: unusual lumps or swelling (tumor), hemorrhage (bleeding), pain and/or ulceration. Compression of surrounding tissues may cause symptoms such as jaundice (yellowing the eyes and skin).
Systemic symptoms: weight loss, poor appetite, fatigue and cachexia (wasting), excessive sweating (night sweats), anemia and specific paraneoplastic phenomena, i.e. specific conditions that are due to an active cancer, such as thrombosis or hormonal changes.
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