Cancer

CANCER





What is cancer?

Cancer is a disease that starts in our cells. Our bodies are made up of millions of cells, grouped together to form tissues and organs such as muscles and bones, the lungs and the liver. Genes inside each cell order it to grow, work, reproduce and die. Normally, our cells obey these orders and we remain healthy. But sometimes the instructions get mixed up,causing the cells to form lumps or tumours, or spread through the bloodstream and lymphatic system to other parts of the body. 

Tumours can be either benign (non-cancerous) or malignant (cancerous). Benign tumour cells stay in one place in the body and are not usually life-threatening. 

Malignant tumour cells are able to invade nearby tissues and spread to other parts of the body. Cancercells that spread to other parts of the body are called metastases. 

The first sign that a malignant tumour has spread (metastasized) is often swelling of nearby lymph nodes, but cancer can metastasize to almost any part of the body. It is important to find malignant tumours as early as possible. 

Cancers are named after the part of the body where they start. For example, cancer thatstarts in the bladder but spreads to the lung is called bladder cancer with lung metastases.







TREATMENTS

Chemotherapy

Chemotherapy uses drugs to destroy cancer cells. Some chemotherapy drugs are given on their own. But more often, several chemotherapy drugs are given together. And chemotherapy may also be given together with other drug treatments, such as biological therapy.Today, there are many different kinds of chemotherapy and combinations of chemotherapy drugs used to treat over 200 different types of cancer. The drugs you get for chemotherapy may be different from the drugs someone else gets. Even if you get the same drugs as someone else, your body may react to them differently. So the way you feel during treatment may be very different from how othersfeel.

“Everyone is different. When you’re in the waiting room to get chemo, people want to share their story. That’s a coping mechanism for some people – how they deal with it. But you need to realize that everyone is different. So don’t let it scare you – even if you have the same type of cancer.”















Radiation therapy

Radiation therapy is the use of a certaintype of energy (radiation) from x-rays, gamma rays, electrons and other sources to destroy cancer cells. Other names for this common method of treating cancer are radiotherapy, x-ray therapy or irradiation.

Radiation in high doses destroys cells in the area being treated by damaging the DNA in their genes, making it impossible for them to grow and divide. During radiation therapy, both cancercells (which are growing in an uncontrolled way) and healthy cells are affected, but most healthy cells can repair themselves afterwards.

The types of radiation therapy

The different types of radiation therapy are:

external beam radiation therapy
(also called external radiation therapy)
brachytherapy
(also called internal radiation therapy or implant therapy)
systemic radiationtherapy
(also called unsealed internal radiation therapy)
Your treatment plan may include more than one type of radiation therapy.











Hormonal drug therapy

Hormones are chemicals made naturally in the body or artificially in a laboratory. They travel in the blood and control the activity or growth of certain cells. For example, the hormones estrogen and testosteronecontrol the growth and function of female and male reproductive organs.

Hormonal drug therapy is often combined with other cancer treatments. Sometimes it’s used before or after other treatments.



























Causes

1- Chemicals
2- Diet and exercises
3- Infection
4- Radiation
5- Heredity
6- Physical agents
7- Hormones...