[thedoc (OP)]

Patrick asked the Naked Scientists:
   
How does cancer form in a patient's body. The general cancers. Also the rare cancers?
What do you think?

[chris]

Cancer is the uncontrolled growth of cells arising from genetic changes or mutations in genes concerned with DNA repair, cell division, growth arrest, cell suicide and senescence.

These genetic changes can be inherited from a parent or acquired during life owing to exposure to carcinogens (cancer-causing entities).

We tend to regard cancer as the final end point of a succession of genetic changes that slowly accrue over time (perhaps 20 years or more). For instance, initial damage to genes concerned with DNA repair means that cells become unable to fix further genetic damage. This leads to more changes cropping up in a range of genes, including those concerned with the way cells grow and observe "rules" regarding how often they divide, what to do when they meet another cell, and so on.

Eventually enough changes are acquired to kick-start a process of uncontrolled growth of the cells, the ability to penetrate invasively the normal tissue boundaries in the body, and the ability to break away from the primary tumour (where the disease started) and migrate to other tissues in remote parts of the body; this is a process called metastasis.

[Dave Morris]

Cancer can strike any gender or age group. Depending on the cancer type, various cancer treatments may be initiated in an effort to eradicate or kill cancer cells.

Chemotherapy treatment, radiotherapy treatment, and breast cancer surgery are the most common types of treatments that battle multiple forms of cancer. However, cancer treatments vary according to the stage of cancer is discovered, as well as location and overall health of the patient. Cancer staging is typically defined as Stage 1, Stage 2, Stage 3 and Stage 4, ranging from early and localized to those that have spread throughout the body.

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[evan_au]

You could start here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cancer

Many cancers can be prevented by not smoking, maintaining a healthy weight, not drinking too much alcohol, eating plenty of vegetables, fruits and whole grains, being vaccinated against certain infectious diseases, not eating too much processed and red meat, and avoiding too much exposure to sunlight.

[Dave Morris]

 Individuals diagnosed with gliomas, or tumors which originate in the brain, as well as those diagnosed with meningiomas, or benign tumors found within the protective lining of the brain, and children who experience brain tumors may benefit from a variety of cancer treatment technologies, either offered separately or combined.

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