What is cancer? Mitosis- normal cell division Cancer- uncontrolled cell division (carcinoma) –Develops into a tumor Benign- does not spread –(Not Cancerous) Malignant- when a tumor is cancerous, it spreads to other tissues Metastasizes – when cancer spreads from the spot of origin
CANCER
Cell division Regulation Cancer cells do not respond to cell regulators. Cyclin- protein that regulates cell cycle. –Cancer cells do not respond to cyclin.
Cell Regulators 2 types –Internal regulators- regulate division from inside the cell. Chromosome duplication –External regulators- regulate division from outside the cell. Growth factors
Normal Cell Growth in Petri Dish
Causes Carcinogen- any cancer causing factor Mutation to DNA Error in replication Outside factor damages portion of DNA Mutation disrupts normal cell cycle Mutation affects cell regulators
Carcinogens –Heredity –Age –Diet –Smoking lung cancer leading cause in death from cancer. –Sun skin cancer most common type in men & women –Alcohol –Radiation
Stages of Cancer Stage I- cancer contained within the affected organ. (small in size) Stage II- Cancer is in a large area of affected organ and beginning to spread Stage III- Cancer has spread to surrounding organs and lymph nodes Stage IV- Cancer has spread to multiple places in the body- difficult to treat Remission- temporary or permanent decrease in disease.
Risk Factors Exposure to carcinogens Family history Radiation exposure UV light – Tanning booths!!!!
Treatments Biopsy- cells are removed and analyzed to identify cancerous tissue. Surgery- cut out cancer cells Radiation- high energy radiation targeted at cancer cells. Strong side effects. Chemotherapy- pharmaceuticals target cancer cells. Targets all fast dividing cells leading to side effects.
Treatments Stem cell transplants – stem cells attempt to replace diseased cells; in hope that they produce healthy ones Holistic remedies