crash course what is a cancer

What is a simple explanation of cancer?

Cancer is the uncontrolled growth of abnormal cells in the body. Cancer develops when the body's normal control mechanism stops working. Old cells do not die and instead grow out of control, forming new, abnormal cells. These extra cells may form a mass of tissue, called a tumor.

What actually is cancer?

Cancer is a condition where cells in a specific part of the body grow and reproduce uncontrollably. The cancerous cells can invade and destroy surrounding healthy tissue, including organs. Cancer sometimes begins in one part of the body before spreading to other areas. This process is known as metastasis.

What is cancer human biology?

A cancer cell is a cell that grows out of control. Unlike normal cells, cancer cells ignore signals to stop dividing, to specialize, or to die and be shed. Growing in an uncontrollable manner and unable to recognize its own natural boundary, the cancer cells may spread to areas of the body where they do not belong.

What is cancer biology for kids?

Cancer happens when cells that are not normal grow and spread very fast. Normal body cells grow and divide and know to stop growing. Over time, they also die. Unlike these normal cells, cancer cells just continue to grow and divide out of control and don't die when they're supposed to.

Why is cancer called cancer?

Origin of the word cancer In Greek, these words refer to a crab, most likely applied to the disease because the finger-like spreading projections from a cancer called to mind the shape of a crab. The Roman physician, Celsus (25 BC - 50 AD), later translated the Greek term into cancer, the Latin word for crab.

What causes cancer?

Smoking, a high-fat diet, and working with toxic chemicals are examples of lifestyle choices that may be risk factors for some adult cancers. Most children with cancer, however, are too young to have been exposed to these lifestyle factors for any extended time.

Does cancer have a purpose?

The study, published in Biotechnology & Biotechnological Equipment, characterizes cancer as a kind of apoptosis designed to protect the integrity of the species, where you or I are killed off to remove our mutated or damaged DNA from the gene pool.

How are cancer cells produced?

Cancer cells are created when the genes responsible for regulating cell division are damaged. Carcinogenesis is caused by mutation and epimutation of the genetic material of normal cells, which upsets the normal balance between proliferation and cell death. This results in uncontrolled cell division in the body.

What are the five types of cancer?

What are the 5 types of cancer?Carcinoma. This type of cancer affects organs and glands, such as the lungs, breasts, pancreas and skin. ... Sarcoma. This cancer affects soft or connective tissues, such as muscle, fat, bone, cartilage or blood vessels.Melanoma. ... Lymphoma. ... Leukemia.

How do you explain cancer to a child video?

1:043:00Kids Just Like You - What is cancer? - YouTubeYouTubeStart of suggested clipEnd of suggested clipBecome so out of control that they destroy the normal cells around them.MoreBecome so out of control that they destroy the normal cells around them.

What are 3 facts about cancer?

Key Cancer Facts10 million people die from cancer every year.At least one third of common cancers are preventable.Cancer is the second-leading cause of death worldwide.70% of cancer deaths occur in low-to-middle income countries.More items...

Are babies born with cancer?

Acquired mutations are beyond human control. So, it's not possible to prevent babies from being born with cancer. Fortunately, there are some things expecting parents can do to salvage the situation.

What are 3 facts about cancer?

Key Cancer Facts10 million people die from cancer every year.At least one third of common cancers are preventable.Cancer is the second-leading cause of death worldwide.70% of cancer deaths occur in low-to-middle income countries.More items...

How do all cancers begin?

All cancers begin in cells. Our bodies are made up of more than a hundred million million (100,000,000,000,000) cells. Cancer starts with changes in one cell or a small group of cells. Usually, we have just the right number of each type of cell.

Can Stress give you cancer?

No, being stressed doesn't directly increase the risk of cancer. The best quality studies have followed up many people for several years. They have found no evidence that those who are more stressed are more likely to get cancer. Some people wonder whether stress causes breast cancer.

Do we all have cancer cells?

No, we don't all have cancer cells in our bodies. Our bodies are constantly producing new cells, some of which have the potential to become cancerous. At any given moment, we may be producing cells that have damaged DNA, but that doesn't mean they're destined to become cancer.

What does it mean when a cancer has metastasized?

When a cancer has metastasized, it means it has spread from the original site to another part of the body. Many childhood cancers have spread to another part of a body before they have been discovered and diagnosed.

How does radiation kill cancer cells?

Radiation therapy uses beams of radiation, either x-rays or protons, to kill cancer cells by damaging the DNA inside them. Radiation therapy is often used alongside chemotherapy or surgery to treat childhood cancer. The radiation targets the cancer but may damage nearby healthy tissue.

What is the survival rate of cancer?

When you hear “survival rate,” that usually refers to the five-year survival rate, a measurement of the percentage of children with a specific type of cancer who live for five years after their diagnosis. Our funding goes to research aimed not only at improving survival rates, but ensuring that all children diagnosed with cancer live full, healthy lives.

What does it mean when a child has no evidence of cancer?

This usually means that a few of the original cancer cells survived the initial treatment. Most cancers have the highest chance of relapse a few months after treatment stops, but some can relapse even years later. Read Logan’s story about persevering through a neuroblastoma relapse.