Contents:
INTRODUCTION
CANCEROUS CELLS
FACTORS CAUSING
CANCER
DIAGNOSIS OF CANCER
TREATING CANCER
CANCER VACCINES
Introduction
Cancer is the abnormal and unregulated growth
of cells. This growth destroys surrounding body
tissues and may spread to other parts of the body
in a process that is known as metastasis.
"Cancer" is actually a group of more than one
hundred separate diseases.
The different types of cancer:
Skin cancer (squamous cell carcinoma and
basal cell carcinoma being the most common)
Lung cancer
Brain cancer
Breast cancer
Prostate cancer
Colon cancer
Ovarian cancer
Leukemia
Lymphoma
There are many others as well.
Cancer can develop anywhere in the body, and at
any age. Unlike infectious diseases such as AIDS,
the flu (influenza), or tuberculosis, cancer is not
contagious - cancer is usually caused by genetic
damage that happens inside an individual cell.
Cancerous Cells
Diagnosis of Cancer
♦PHYSICAL EXAMINATION
A complete physical examination is done, with
special attention paid to the lymph nodes (in the
neck, under the arms, etc.), skin, lungs, breasts,
genitals, and prostate (in men).
♦BIOPSY
Suspicious growths that may be potential tumors
are often removed (using and excisional or
incisional biopsy) or sampled (using a fine needle
aspiration biopsy) and sent to a laboratory to be
identified.
A biopsy can also be obtained with the aid of a
procedure known as endoscopy, where a tiny
camera is used to view a suspicious lesion.
♦BLOOD TESTS
Blood tests can help determine the extent or
stage of certain cancers, and other abnormal
findings correlated with different types of cancer.
♦IMAGING STUDIES
Imaging studies like x-rays, MRI, bone scans, or
ultrasound can often determine the location and
other characteristics of a tumor.
♦SCREENING
The American Cancer Society recommends
screenings for certain types of cancer.
∗For Women:
Breast cancer should be tested for by self-
examination every month for women over 18.
Examination of the breasts by your doctor should
be completed every three years for women between
the ages of 18 and 40, then every year after age 40.
A mammogram should be taken between the age of
35 and 40 as a baseline, then every 1 to 2 years
between ages 40 to 49, and then annually after age
50.
Women should also receive a Papanicolaou (Pap)
smear to screen for cervical cancer annually
between the ages of 18 and 65.
An evaluation of the pelvis to screen for cervical,
uterine, and ovarian cancer should be preformed
every 1-3 years between the ages of 18-40, then
annually.
∗For Men:
For men, screening for prostate cancer should be
completed yearly after age 50 (45 for high risk
individuals), which includes rectal examination and
a blood test for prostate specific antigen (PSA).
Screening for rectal and colon cancer should be
done with a rectal examination annually after age
40, with stool examination annually after age 50,
and with sigmoidoscopy every 3 to 5 years after
age 50.
Treating Cancer
♦SURGERY
Surgery is the oldest way to treat cancer. If the
tumor is relatively localized, it can be surgically
removed. Often, a border of healthy tissue
surrounding the tumor is also taken to ensure that
all of the malignant cells have been removed.
Surgery is commonly used for cancer of the
breast, colon, mouth, head and neck, kidney, testes
and other parts of the body.
Surgery can also be used to remove tissue that
may become cancerous if left untreated
(precancerous) and also to relieve symptoms
caused by the cancer.
Surgery is often combined with chemotherapy
and/or radiation to improve results.
♦RADIATION THERAPY
Radiation therapy, also know as radiotherapy, x-
ray therapy, cobalt therapy, or irradiation, is useful
in fighting cancer because it destroys cancer cells
more easily than normal cells.
Radiotherapy is commonly delivered with an
external beam of x-rays, gamma rays or alpha and
beta particles directed at the tumor.
Radioactive pellets or wires can also be used
internally if they are put in a tiny container and
then implanted into the body near the tumor.
In some cases, both internal and external
radiation is used.
Radiation therapy is used for early Hodgkin's
lymphoma, certain cancers of the lung, prostate,
bladder, and other tumors.
Radiation therapy is commonly used in
conjunction with other therapies, including surgery
and chemotherapy.For instance, radiation therapy
may shrink a tumor to facilitate surgery, or be used
as an adjunct after surgery to prevent the tumor
from reforming.
In some cases, radiation therapy is used alone,
especially when the tumor is very susceptible to
radiation, or when surgery to the area is too risky.
Radiation can be used to shrink a tumor to
provide relief from symptoms associated with
tumor growth, even when a cure is highly unlikely.
♦CHEMOTHERAPY
Chemotherapy or drug therapy is used to kill
cancer cells, while attempting to limit the damage
to normal cells.
Chemotherapy is useful in fighting cancer that
has spread to other parts of the body and cannot be
easily detected or treated with surgery or radiation
therapy.
Chemotherapy has been successful in treating
acute leukemia, Hodgkin's and malignant
lymphoma, small cell lung cancer, bladder and
testicular cancer, and other forms of cancer.
Chemotherapy can cure cancer in some cases, limit
the spread of cancer, and help alleviate symptoms
in some types of cancer.
Chemotherapy can be used in combination with
surgery and/or radiation, often with improved
results.
♦HORMONE THERAPY
Hormone therapy involves anything that deals
with manipulating the body's hormones to treat the
cancer, including administering hormones and
drugs. Doctors may also remove hormone glands to
kill cancer cells or prevent further cancerous
growth.
♦IMMUNOTHERAPY
During immunotherapy, patients are given
medication to stimulate the body's immune system
to fight cancerous cells.
Cancer Vaccines
∗Anti-idiotype vaccines
Antibodies, called idiotype antibodies, act as
antigens, triggering immune system which will
produce anti-idiotype antibodies to attack the
idiotypes.
∗Dendritic cell vaccines
Dendritic cells break the antigens on the cancer
cell surfaces into smaller pieces and then act as
most-wanted posters for the immune system,
displaying those antigen pieces to the killer T cells.
To make a dendritic cell vaccine, scientists extract
use the patient's dendritic cells.
∗DNA vaccines
Bits of DNA from the patient's cells are injected
into the patient, which instructs the other cells to
continuously produce certain antigens which force
the immune system to respond by producing more T
cells.
∗Tumor cell vaccines
Tumor cell vaccines can be produced using
cancer cells from the patient or another patient.
These cells are killed and injected into the patient.
While the cells are dead, the antigens are still
recognized by the immune system, which responds
by attacking the dead cells. The immune system
will also attack the live cancer cells carrying the
antigen that was displayed on the dead cells.