What is Cancer?
The name has Greek roots and means both crab and tumor. Around 1600, the term was first used in English to also refer to modern medicine. However, a set of illnesses known as cancer involve abnormal cell proliferation and have the ability to invade or spread to different bodily regions. Additionally, they make up a group of neoplasms. Also, a neoplasm or tumor is a collection of cells that have experienced uncontrolled growth; they frequently take the form of a mass or lump but can also be dispersed widely. Moreover, globally, there were 10 million cancer-related fatalities in 2019 and 23.6 million new instances of the disease per year, suggesting rises of 26% and 21% over the previous ten years, respectively.
What are some common types of Cancer?
Globally, more than 200 types of cancer are diagnosed among people. Also, these types can be put into groups depending upon the type of cell they invade and grow into.
Groups of Cancer can be categorized according to the cell they attack as follows:
- Brain and spinal cord cancers- These cancer affect areas of the central nervous system (brain and spine)
- Lymphoma and myeloma- These cancers attack immune system cells
- Sarcoma- Connective or we can say supportive tissues such as fat, muscles, bone, cartilage, or blood vessels get attacked by cancer in this type
- Leukemia- In this type white blood cells and tissues where blood cells like bone marrow are made is affected by cancer
- Carcinoma- This type of cancer affects skin and tissues that also covers or lines up organs inside the body. Furthermore, there are different subcategories of carcinoma: basal cell carcinoma, and squamous cell. adenocarcinoma and transitional cell carcinoma
Common types of Cancer found among cancer patients are as follows:
- Bladder Cancer- A cancer type that primarily affects aged people in their bladder cells. If diagnosed in earlier stages it can be treatable
- Breast Cancer- This type of cancer affects breast cells. It commonly affects women at large
- Colorectal Cancer- Cancer that attacks the cells of the colon is known as colorectal cancer. It typically affects aged people.
- Kidney Cancer- It is the most common type of cancer which come under the carcinoma cancer type
- Lung Cancer- As the name suggests, this type of cancer affects the lungs. So, it affects most people who are exposed to smoking, toxic chemicals, and genetics
- Lymphoma- Lymphatic system of the body gets the risk of cancer in this type of cancer. It includes lymph glands/nodes, speel, bone marrow, and also the thymus gland. Additionally, Lymphoma can cause cancer to spread to other parts of organs as well
- Melanoma- This type of dangerous skin cancer type affects cells that produce melanin which is responsible to give skin color to the human body. Cancer also forms in other parts of the body like the eyes, nose, and throat
- Oral and Oropharyngeal Cancer- Cancer that develops in Oropharynx tissue that may also give signs like lumps in the neck region and soring of the throat. Furthermore, people with HPV (human papillomavirus) or smoking addiction face this type of cancer mostly
- Pancreatic Cancer- So, this type causes cancer in pancreatic cells or tissues. Also, signs of pancreatic cancer are hard to detect in the early stages
- Prostate Cancer- As the name suggests, this cancer affects the prostate which is responsible to produce seminal fluid in men
- Thyroid Cancer- This cancer type forms in the thyroid gland’s cells and tissues. Furthermore, there are different types of thyroid cancer that affect patients differently
- Uterine Cancer- This type of cancer develops in the uterus that includes two sub-type: endometrial cancer and uterine sarcoma. Additionally, this cancer type mostly affects women who hit puberty early or people who are overweight
What are the General Causes of Cancer?
Furthermore, there are various physical, genetic, and psychological causes of cancers as follows:
- Family history
- DNA damage
- Genomic instability
- Inherited genetic mutations
- Poor lifestyle, behavioral and environmental exposure
- Exposure to toxic chemicals and physical agents
- Tobacco consumption
- Poor exposure to pollutants, diet
- Obesity
- Infections
- Radiation
- Altering of genes
- Aging
- Alcohol consumption
- Hormonal changes
- Inflammation in body parts
- Organ transplantation
- Stress
- Mental and physical trauma
- Maternal-fetal transmission
What are Common Signs of Cancer?
Here are some common signs of cancer even though other types of cancer may have specific types of signs and symptoms.
- Pain in certain areas of the body externally/internally
- Sudden weight loss
- Fever
- Extreme tiredness
- Changes in skin tone. texture, shape, or pattern
- Sores that remain unhealed for the longest time
- Coughing for a prolonged time
- Bleeding
- Changes in appetite levels
- Unusual discharge from the body
- Development of lumps
- Sudden appearances of moles in certain areas
What are the treatment methods for Cancer?
Furthermore, every type of cancer needs to be treated differently. Moreover, Either it goes through only one specific type of treatment or requires a combination of treatments. Treatment methods include:
- Surgery
- Immunotherapy
- Targeted therapy
- Chemotherapy
- Radiation therapy
- Hormone therapy
- Laser treatments
- Bone marrow transplant
- Medications
Conclusion
A set of illnesses known as cancer involve abnormal cell proliferation and have the ability to invade or spread to different bodily regions. Moreover, globally, more than 200 types of cancer that many people go through. Also, these types can be put into groups depending upon the type of cell they invade and grow into. Additionally, there are various physical, genetic, and psychological causes of cancers. Moreover, every type of cancer needs to be treated differently. Either it goes through only one specific type of treatment or requires a combination of treatments.
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