1. Genetic Damage and Mutation

2. Genetic Damage
Cancer results from the accumulation of genetic damage across time
Cancer is a disease in which a single body cell undergoes a genetic transformation into a cancer cell
The cell and the descendants proliferate across many years
This produces a tumor

3. The cancer cell has many differences
Genetically unstable
Prone to rearrangements
May have deleted chromosomes
Look different (shape and appearance)
Uninhibited growth
Do not cooperate with other cells

4. Cancer as a Multi-step Process
Many theories on the development of cancer
Research has discovered that cancer does not happen all at once
Increased incidence with age
Development of cancer can happen decades after exposure to carcinogens
Increased incidence of cancer among people with a inherited predisposition

5. Mutations
Two major categories of genes that regulate the cell cycle play a role in developing cancer
Proto-oncogenes: encourages cell division
Tumor suppressor genes: inhibits cell division

6. Mutated proto-oncogenes become oncogenes which stimulate excessive cell division
A mutated tumor suppressor gene inactivates its process eliminating the critical inhibition of cell division