Transcript Understanding Cancer


Cancer is a group of more than 100
diseases that develop over time
› Involve the uncontrolled division of the
body’s cells

Cancer is the 2nd leading cause of death
in the US

More than 2,300 years ago, Hippocrates
observed that the veins off of some
breast tumors looked like limbs of a crab
so the Latin word for crab was eventually
used for all tumors

Tumor: mass of cells
› May remain within the tissue in which it
originated (in situ or benign cancer)
› May begin to invade nearby tissues (invasive or
malignant cancer)
› Cells can move through the blood or lymph
system and create tumors elsewhere in the
body (metastatic cancer)

Stages of tumor development:
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Mutation
Hyperplasia
Dysplasia
In situ cancer (benign tumor)
Invasive cancer (malignant cancer)
Cells can move through the blood or lymph
system and create tumors elsewhere in the
body (metastatic cancer)

The type of cancer depends on it’s
location

Each type of cancer has its own growth
rate, prognosis, and treatability

Lifetime Risk
› The probability that you will develop cancer
› Men have a one in two lifetime risk
› Women have a one in three lifetime risk

Relative Risk
› Your individual risk based on genetics and
risk factors

Incidence Rate:
› The number of new cases per 100,000 people

Mortality Rate:
› The number of deaths per 100,000 people per
year

Survival Rate:
› The proportion of
patients alive at a given
point after their diagnosis of cancer
 The chance of surviving cancer increases with
earlier detection and treatment
Cancer in children is relatively rare; only
14.1 cases per 100,000 children under the
age of 15
 However, after accidents, Cancer is the
second leading cause of childhood
death in the US.
 Leukemias and cancers of the brain and
nervous system account for more than ½
the cancers among children.

 Levels of cancer prevention
› Individual behavior changes is critical
› Health care providers – provide both
counseling and screening
› National level – government regulations to
minimize public exposure to known
carcinogens
› International level – actions of developed
countries can effect the incidence of
cancer worldwide