Introduction On Cancer

PART I
Task 1
By definition, cancer is a disease when some of the human body’s cells grow uncontrollably
and spread to other parts of the body. It can start from almost anywhere in the human body,
where we have trillions of cells. Under normal circumstances, when cells grow old or become
damaged, human cells will grow new ones and multiply, via cell division, to take their place
as the body needs them.
However, sometimes this orderly process went haywire resulting to abnormal or damaged
cells to grow and multiply instead of normal ones. These cells will then form lumps of tissue
called tumours which may be cancerous (malignant tumours) or non-cancerous (benign
tumours). Researchers have argued that there are some genetic changes that cause cancer can
happen because of errors that occur as cells divide or due to damages to DNA caused by
harmful substances in the environment, such as the chemicals in tobacco smoke and
ultraviolet rays from the sun or in some cases, they were inherited from parents. Each
person’s cancer has a unique combination of genetic changes. As the cancer continues to
grow, additional changes will occur. Even within the same tumour, different cells may have
different genetic changes.
These cancerous cells have some of abnormal traits that they rely on so that they can survive.
Researchers have taken advantage of this fact, developing treatment therapies that target the
abnormal features of cancer cells. For instance, some cancer cells tell blood vessels to grow
toward tumours. Hence, these blood vessels will supply tumours with oxygen and nutrients
and remove waste products from the tumours. Researcher then will develop treatment
therapies that will prevent blood vessels from growing toward tumours, essentially starving
the tumour of needed nutrients.
Malignant tumours are dangerous because they invade, or spread into, nearby tissues and they
can also travel to distant places in the body to form new tumours (a process called metastasis)
subsequently invading and damaging other organs. Generally, cancers form solid tumours,
but blood cancer, such as leukaemia, do not. In solid forms, cancer patients can undergo
operations to remove this type of tumour as a last resort, but bear in mind that malignant
tumours have the possibility to grow back.
On the other hand, benign tumours do not invade to nearby tissues, but they can sometimes
be quite large. Some can even cause serious symptoms or be life threatening, such as benign
tumours growing in the brain. Once removed, benign tumours usually don’t grow back.
There are numerous risk factors involving cancer and simultaneously there are also as
numerous strategies that can be applied to combat these risks.
Risk factors
Some of the cancer risk factors are practically open secrets such as excessive tobacco use also
called smoking, alcohol consumption, unhealthy diet, physical inactivity and air pollution.
Some chronic infections are risk factors for cancer; this is a particular issue in low- and
middle-income countries. Approximately 13% of cancers diagnosed in 2018 globally were
attributed to carcinogenic infections
However between 30 and 50% of cancers can be prevented by avoiding risk factors and
implementing existing evidence-based prevention strategies. The cancer burden can also be
reduced through early detection of cancer and appropriate treatment and care of patients who
develop cancer. Many cancers have a high chance of cure if diagnosed early and treated
appropriately.
Prevention
Cancer risk can be reduced by:
 not using tobacco;
 maintaining a healthy body weight;
 eating a healthy diet, including fruit and vegetables;
 doing physical activity on a regular basis;
 avoiding or reducing consumption of alcohol;
 getting vaccinated against HPV and hepatitis B if you belong to a group for which
vaccination is recommended;
 avoiding ultraviolet radiation exposure (which primarily results from exposure to the
sun and artificial tanning devices) and/or using sun protection measures;
 ensuring safe and appropriate use of radiation in health care (for diagnostic and
therapeutic purposes);
 minimizing occupational exposure to ionizing radiation; and
 reducing exposure to outdoor air pollution and indoor air pollution, including radon (a
radioactive gas produced from the natural decay of uranium, which can accumulate in
buildings — homes, schools and workplaces).
 Early detection - cancer mortality is reduced when cases are detected and treated
early. There are two components of early detection: early diagnosis and screening.
Treatment
A correct cancer diagnosis is essential for appropriate and effective treatment because every
cancer type requires a specific treatment regimen. Treatment usually includes surgery,
radiotherapy, and/or systemic therapy (chemotherapy, hormonal treatments, targeted
biological therapies). Proper selection of a treatment regimen takes into consideration both
the cancer and the individual being treated. Completion of the treatment protocol in a defined
period of time is important to achieve the predicted therapeutic result.
Determining the goals of treatment is an important first step. The primary goal is generally to
cure cancer or to considerably prolong life. Improving the patient's quality of life is also an
important goal. This can be achieved by support for the patient’s physical, psychosocial and
spiritual well-being and palliative care in terminal stages of cancer.
Some of the most common cancer types, such as breast cancer, cervical cancer, oral cancer,
and colorectal cancer, have high cure probabilities when detected early and treated according
to best practices.
Some cancer types, such as testicular seminoma and different types of leukaemia and
lymphoma in children, also have high cure rates if appropriate treatment is provided, even
when cancerous cells are present in other areas of the body.
There is, however, a significant variation in treatment availability between countries of
different income levels; comprehensive treatment is reportedly available in more than 90% of
high-income countries but less than 15% of low-income countries (3).

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PART I

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