Health Tips

Cancer

About Cancer:
1) Cancer begins in cells, the building blocks that make up tissues. Tissues make up the organs of the body.Normally, cells grow and divide to form new cells as the body needs them. When cells grow old, they die, and new cells take their place.Sometimes this orderly process goes wrong. New cells form when the body does not need them, and old cells do not die when they should. These extra cells can form a mass of tissue called a growth or tumor.

2) Cancer begins when a cell begins dividing uncontrollably. Eventually these cells form a visible mass or tumor. This initial tumor is called the "primary" tumor. Cells from the primary tumor can break off and lodge elsewhere in the body where they then grow into secondary tumors. This process is called "metastasis" and a cancer which has spread to other organs is called "metastatic." When cancer spreads to another organ, the type of cancer remains the type of the primary tumor. Thus cancer that started in the colon and spread to the liver is still colon cancer. It is not "liver cancer". Similarly breast cancer that has spread to the bone is not "bone cancer", it is metastatic breast cancer.

Types of Cancer
1) Bladder Cancer 2) Breast Cancer 3) Leukemia 4) Lung Cancer
5) Ovarian Cancer 6) Prostate Cancer 7) Bone 8) Brain 9) Skin10) Eye

Primary and Secondary Brain Tumors: A tumor that begins in the brain is called a primary brain tumor. In children, most brain tumors are primary tumors. In adults, most tumors in the brain have spread there from the lung, breast, or other parts of the body. When this happens, the disease is not brain cancer. The tumor in the brain is a secondary tumor. It is named for the organ or the tissue in which it began.Treatment for secondary brain tumors depends on where the cancer started and the extent of the disease.

WHAT IS LUNG CANCER? Lung cancer is the leading cancer killer in both men and women. There were an estimated 164,100 new cases of lung cancer and an estimated 156,900 deaths from lung cncer in the United States in 2000.

The rate of lung cancer cases appears to be dropping among white and African-American men in the United States, while it continues to rise among both white and African-American women.

There are two major types of lung cancer: non-small cell lung cancer and small cell lung cancer. Non-small cell lung cancer is much more common. It usually spreads to different parts of the body more slowly than small cell lung cancer. Squamous cell carcinoma, ademocarcinoma, and large cell carcinoma are three types of non-small cell lung cancer. Small cell lung cancer also called oat cell cancer, accounts for about 20% of all lung cancer.

WHAT CAUSES LUNG CANCER?

Smoking is the number one cause of lung cancer. Lung cancer may also be the most tragic cancer because in most cases, it might have been prevented -- 87% of lung cancer cases are caused by smoking. Cigarette smoke contains more than 4,000 different chemicals, many of which are proven cancer-causing substances, or carcinogens. Smoking cigars or pipes also increases the risk of lung cancer.

The more you smoke and the longer you smoke, the greater your risk of lung cancer. But if you stop smoking, the risk of lung cancer decreases each year as abnormal cells are replaced by normal cells. After ten years, the risk drops to a level that is one-third to one-half of the risk for people who continue to smoke. In addition, quitting smoking greatly reduces the risk of developing other smoking-related diseases, such as heart disease, stroke, emphysema and chronic bronchitis.
Introduction
This booklet has been written to help you understand more about primary bone cancer. We hope it answers some of the questions you may have about its diagnosis and treatment, and addresses some of the feelings which are a large part of anyone's reaction to a cancer diagnosis.

About Bone Cancer:

Cancers of the bone can be primary or secondary cancers. Your doctor will tell you whether your cancer started in the bones (primary bone cancer) or started elsewhere in the body and spread to the bones (secondary bone cancer). The two diseases are quite different and this booklet is only about primary bone cancer. CancerBACUP has a separate booklet on secondary bone cancer.

Many types of primary bone cancer affect children and young adults and this booklet has been written for parents of children with bone cancer as well as teenagers and adults with the disease. CancerBACUP and the UKCCSG (United Kingdom Children's Cancer Study Group) have produced a revised version of the UKCCSG booklet, A parent's guide to children's cancers.

We can't advise you about the best treatment for yourself or your child because this information can only come from your own doctor, who will be familiar with your full medical history.

What Causes Skin Cancer?

Sunburn and Sunlight
Very simply, sunburn and UV light can damage your skin, and this damage can lead to skin cancer. There are of course other determining factors, including your heredity and the environment you live in. However, both the total amount of sun received over the years, and overexposure resulting in sunburn can cause skin cancer. Most people receive 80% of their lifetime exposure to the sun by 18 years of age. The message to parents from this is to protect your children.

Tanning is your skin's response to UV light. It is a protective reaction to prevent further injury to your skin from the sun. However, it does not prevent skin cancer.

Remember, skin cancer is very slow to develop. The sunburn you receive this week may take 20 years or more to become skin cancer.

What is Skin Cancer?
Skin cancer is a disease in which cancer (malignant) cells are found in the outer layers of your skin. Your skin protects your body against heat, light, infection, and injury. It also stores water, fat, and vitamin D.

The skin has two main layers and several kinds of cells. The top layer of skin is called the epidermis. It contains three kinds of cells: flat, scaly cells on the surface called squamous cells; round cells called basal cells; and cells called melanocytes, which give your skin its color.
About Breast Cancer: If you are diagnosed with breast cancer, the most important thing for you to remember is that it is not a hopeless condition. Early detection and modern therapy with a combination of surgery, radiation, drugs, or hormones can help many patients.

According to the National Cancer Institute, when breast cancer is found early and is still localized, the relative survival rate (when measured at 5 years) is 91 percent.

Although the incidence of breast cancer is increasing -- one out of eight women will develop breast cancer -- mortality rates have remained fairly stable over the past several years due to early detection and improved treatment.

Benign Breast Conditions
What are benign breast conditions?
The breast is made up of two main types of tissue:

1) glandular tissue - the lobules and ducts of the breast
2) stromal tissue - the fatty tissue and supporting ligaments
These tissues in any area of the breast can undergo changes that cause diseases or disorders, such as breast cancers or benign (non-cancerous) breast conditions.

The most common of the benign breast conditions are:

1) fibrocystic changes
2) benign breast tumors
3) breast inflammation
Benign breast conditions are very common. According to the American Cancer Society, these conditions can be found in nine out of ten women.

What are symptoms of benign breast conditions?
Benign breast conditions are usually not life-threatening, but may cause symptoms, such as:

1) pain
2) lump or swelling
3) tenderness
4) skin irritation or dimpling
5) nipple pain or retraction (turning inward)
6) redness or scaliness of the nipple or breast skin
a discharge other than breast milk
Although rarely, some benign conditions are associated with a later risk of developing breast cancer.

Breast evaluation procedures:
It is important to determine whether the problems are due to benign breast conditions or breast cancer.

What you can do:

Follow the routine three-step plan for breast health.
See your doctor as soon as you notice any change in your breasts.
What your physician may do:

Perform a complete physical examination to:
locate any lump and feel its texture, size, and relationship to the skin and chest muscles

look for changes in the nipples or the skin of the breast

check lymph nodes under the armpit and above the collarbones
Request imaging tests, including:
diagnostic mammography to look for masses and calcifications
breast ultrasound to further evaluate information from the physical examination or mammography
Request a laboratory microscopic examination of discharge from nipples.
Request a ductogram x-ray of the nipples.
Request a biopsy of tissue removed from the suspicious area.

What are the types of biopsy?

image-guided biopsies - those aided by ultrasound or other imaging techniques, including:
fine needle aspiration - a very fine needle is guided into the suspicious area and a small sample of the tissue is removed.
core needle biopsy - a larger needle is guided into the lump to remove a small cylinder of tissue.
surgical biopsy - a surgical procedure is used to remove all or part of a lump.

How are benign breast conditions treated?
Specific treatment for benign breast disease will be determined by your physician(s) based on:

1) your overall health and medical history
2) extent of the disease
3) your tolerance for specific medications, procedures, or therapies
expectations for the course of the disease
4) your opinion or preference
Treatment is usually based on treating the symptoms, and may include medications, diet changes, or minor surgical procedures.