Sunteți pe pagina 1din 9

1

WhatisCancerandcanitbeprevented?

Each year, approximately 7.6 million people die from cancer worldwide. The main idea
of this research paper is going to be discussing cancer and can it be prevented. The three
subtopics are the risks factors of cancer, treatmentforcancer,andpreventionofcancer.Cancer
is a disease caused by an uncontrolled division ofabnormalcellsinapartofthebody.Canceris
a term used to refer to a condition where the bodys cells begin to grow and reproduce in an
uncontrollable way(What is Cancer). These cells can invade and destroy healthy tissue,
including organs. Cancer sometimes begins in one part of the body before spreading to other
parts. The cancer cells accumulate in one part of the body, eventually forming a tumor. The
tumor then starts to destroy the bodies cells. If the tumors arent treated in a matter of time, a
personcouldhavesomeillnessesoritcouldcausedeath.Therearetwodifferenttypesoftumors.
One is called malignant and the other is called benign. A malignant tumor is cancerous, but a
benign is a noncanceroustumorthatmanypeoplehave(Bollinger).AccordingtoTheAmerican
Cancer Society Inc, cancer is the second leading cause of death in the United States. About
onehalf of all men and onethird of all women in the US will develop cancer during their
lifetimes.Millionsofpeoplearelivingwithcancerorhavehadcancer.
The earliest cancercasesarefoundtodate backtoaround1500to3000B.C.Conforming
to Lecia (Bushak), The origin of the word cancer is creditedtotheGreek physicianHippocrates
(460370 B.C.). Hippocrates used the terms carcinos and carcinoma to describe nonulcer
forming and ulcer forming tumors. Descriptions of cancer were written around 1600 B.C. by

Watkins

Edwin Smith and George Ebers, and are believedtodatefromsourcesasearlyas2500B.C.At


this time, cancer was believed to be a humordisorderandwastreatedbydoingthingslikeadiet
or blood letting. Usually they would not succeed by doing these treatments. Treating cancer
with humorist techniques was still being used through the MiddleAges.This wasanerawhere
information was limited and autopsies couldnt be done because of religion. It wasnt until the
renaissancewhentheonlycourseoftreatmentwastosurgicallyremovesurfacetumorsifdoable.
Cancers are classified accordingtothebodypartthattheyoccur in.An exampleofthiswouldbe
braincancer,prostatecancer,and/orbreastcancer.
The next topic I will bediscussingistheriskfactorsof cancer.Researchhasshownthat
certain riskfactorsmayincreaseapersonschancesofdevelopingcancer.Scientistslookatlarge
groups of people and compare those who develop cancer with those who dont. These studies
may show that the people who develop cancer are more or less likely to behave incertainways
or to be exposed to certain substances than those who do not develop cancer(Risk Factors for
Cancer). Studies cannot prove that a certain substance or behavior causes cancer. Some of the
most studied known or suspected risk factors of cancer go by the names of age, alcohol,
cancercausing substances, chronic inflammation, diet, hormones, immunosuppression,
infectious agents,obesity,radiation,sunlight,andtobacco.Theaverageageofacancerdiagnosis
is 66 years which meansthathalfofcancercasesoccurinpeoplebelowtheageof66andhalfin
people above theageof66.Onequarterofnewcancercasesarediagnosedinpeopleaged 65 to
74. For example, the median age at diagnosis is 61 years for breast cancer, 70 years for lung
cancer, and 66 years for prostate cancer (National Cancer Institute). Even though these studies
show the median age for a person to catch a cancerous disease, cancer could appear or occur at

Watkins

any age. An example of this could be how bone cancer is more often to be diagnosed topeople
under the ageof 20. Neuroblastomaandsomeothercancersare morefrequentinadolescentsand
children than in adults. Only one percent of people under the age of 20 are diagnosed with
cancer. Ten percent of leukemias are pinpointedinadolescentsandchildrenundertheagegroup
of20orless.
Drinking too much alcohol can increase a persons chances of developing cancer. The
places that you could prosper or develop cancer in are the throat, breast, mouth, colon, rectum,
larynx (which is your voice box), liver, and esophagus. The more alcohol that a person
consumes, the higher the risk of developing one of the cancers above. It is a higher risk for a
person who drinks and uses tobacco to catch cancer. Doctors advise people whodrinktodoso
in moderate amounts. The federal governments Dietary Guidelines for Americans defines
moderate alcoholdrinkingasuptoonedrink perdayforwomenanduptotwodrinksperdayfor
men(National Cancer Institute). Some people suggest that particular substances in red wine
have anticancer properties. It hasnt been proved that drinking red wine reduces the risk of
cancer(NationalCancerInstitute).
People who are obese (a person who is grossly fat or overweight) have a higher risk of
obtaining many types of cancer. These are the cancers that could be contracted from obesity:
breast, colon, rectum, endometrium, kidney, esophagus, pancreas and gallbladder. Conversely,
eating a healthy diet, being physicallyactive,andkeepingahealthyweightmayhelpreducerisk
of some cancers. These healthy behaviors are also important to lessentheriskof otherillnesses,
such as heart disease, type II diabetes, and high blood pressure (National Cancer Institute).
Another risk factor for cancer is tobacco. Tobacco is the leading cause of death and cancer for

Watkins

people who use it. People who use tobacco products or who areregularlyaround
environmental
tobacco smoke have an increased risk of cancer because tobacco products and secondhand
smoke have many chemicals that damagepeoples DNA.Usingtobaccocausesseveraldifferent
types of cancer including cancer in the lungs, mouth, esophagus, throat, bladder, kidney, liver,
stomach, pancreas and so on. People who use chewing tobacco or snuff also have a chance of
developing cancer in the mouth, pancreas and esophagus. According to The National Cancer
Institute, there isnt asafeleveloftobaccouse. Peoplewhoquitsmoking,despiteoftheir age,
have substantial gains in life expectancy compared to those who continuetosmoke.Also,when
a person quits smokingatthetimeofacancerdiagnosis,itreducestheriskofdeath.Apersons
risk of getting lung cancer is more than 11 times that of developing brain cancer and 8 times
greater than that of stomach cancer(Azvolinsky). About 65 percent of the variation in cancer
risk among tissue types canbeexplainedbythenumberofstemcelldivisionsatissueundergoes
within its lifetime. Themore thecumulativenumberofstemcelldivisions,thegreaterthecancer
rate in that tissue. Stem cells live long, selfrenew, and give rise to clonal cell populations in a
tissue. Head and arms undergoes the lowest number of stem cell divisions and have among the
lowest cancer rates. In conclusion, the facts above inform people how stem cell division helps
outwithcancerandtellsabouttherisk.
Next, information will be provided about the forms of treatment for cancer. The most
common types of cancer treatment are surgery, chemotherapy, and radiation. Surgery is
frequently the first treatment alternative if the tumor can be taken out of the body (American
Cancer Society, Inc.). Sometimes only part of the tumor can be removed. Radiation,
chemotherapy, or bothmightbeusedtoshrinkthetumorbeforeoraftersurgery.Chemotherapy

Watkins

is used to kill cancer cells by doctors. The meaning of chemotherapy is the use of drugs to kill
cancer cells. The drug can betakenbymouthorinjectedintothe veins.Thechemodrugstravel
through the body in the bloodstream reaching cancer cells that may have spread fromthetumor
to other parts of the body. Chemotherapy has some side effects if taken. Some of the side
effects would be a higher risk of getting infections, serious bleeding or bruising after cuts or
injuries, and tiredness or fatigue. Radiationtherapyuseshighenergyraystokillcancercellsand
shrink tumors. Theradiationmaycomefrom outsidethebody,whichiscalledexternalradiation,
or from radioactive materials put right into the tumor, or internal radiation. Getting external
radiation is much like getting anxray(AmericanCancerSociety). Theradiationispainless,but
tissue damage could cause side effects. Some of the side effects for a person who undergoes
radiation would be skin irritation, andalso severetiredness.Someoftheothertypesoftreatment
are stemcellorbonemarrowtransplant,targetedtherapy,hormone therapy,andimmunotherapy.
Targeted therapy is a treatment that targets the cancer cells and causes less damage to healthy
cells. Hormone therapy issometimesusedtotreatparticularkindsofbreastandprostatecancers.
Immunotherapy is a treatment designed to boost the cancer patients immune system to help
fightthecancer.
According to Julia Medew, early cancer screening tests can save lives. Sumitra Ananda
said, out of 1930 patients aged between 50 and 70, 141 or 7 percent of people had been
diagnosed because of the national screening test. The rate of cancer recurrence for peoplewho
had had the test was 4 percent versus 21 percent for patients intheothergroup. Peoplebetween
the ages of 50 and 70 are advised to get a screening test everytwoyears.Thefiveyearsurvival
rate was91percentforpeoplewhotookthescreeningtest,comparedto70percentforthosewho

Watkins

had not taken the test. These five facts above came from Julia Medew and the article Early
CancerScreeningSavesLives.
Things you could do to prevent cancer from developing in your body are: dont use
tobacco, eat a healthy diet, maintainahealthyweightandbe physicallyactive.Smokingtobacco
has been connected to the cause of many cancers including pancreas andkidneycancer.Evenif
you don't use tobacco, exposure to secondhand smoke might increase your risk of lung cancer.
Avoiding tobacco is one of the most important health decisions a person could make (Mayo
Clinic Staff). While making healthy choices can't guarantee cancer prevention, it could help
reduce your risk. To maintain the diet, you could eat lots of fruits and vegetables. Try to avoid
obesity by eating healthier foods instead of fatty foods. Dont drink alcohol too often but
alternatively drink it in leniency. Try not to eat too much processedmeatsuchasbacon,salami,
and hot dogs. Another prevention method could be exercising regularly on ascheduletostayfit
and physically active. According to The Sydney Morning Herald, a form of vitamin B couldbe
key to preventing sometypes ofskin cancer.PeoplewhoweregivenvitaminB3were23percent
less likely to develop extremely common skin cancers. Hospitals in Sydney involved 193
patients given Vitamin B3 and 193 given placebo over ayear.Therewere336cancersintheB3
groupand463intheplacebogroup.
In conclusion, Cancer is a disease of uncontrolled growth of abnormal cells that
eventually turn into tumors. Smoking and drinking are twoofthemaincausesofcancer.Cancer
is a deadly disease that anyone can get. Peopleschancesofgettingcancercouldbedecreased if
theytakeprecautionsandtakecareoftheirbodyscorrect.

Watkins

WorkCited

"AdultHealth."CancerPrevention:7TipstoReduceYourRisk.MayoFoundationforMedical
EducationandResearch,05Nov.2015.Web.11Dec.2015.
Azvolinsky,Anna."StemCellDivisionsHelpExplainCancerRisk."TheScientist.The
Scientist,01Jan.2015.Web.10Dec.2015.
Bollinger,Ty."BenignandMalignantTumors:WhatIstheDifference?"TheTruthAbout
Cancer.TTACPublishing,LLC,11Feb.2015.Web.02Dec.2015.
Bushak,Lecia."ABriefHistoryOfCancer[PHOTOS]."MedicalDaily.MedicalDaily,25June
2015.Web.18Nov.2015.
Butt,Craig"Oneinthreediagnosedcancerscouldhavebeenprevented:study."SydneyMorning

Watkins

Herald[Sydney,Australia]7Oct.2015:8.OpposingViewpointsinContext.Web.10
Dec.2015.
"EarlyHistoryofCancer."EarlyHistoryofCancer.AmericanCancerSocietyInc.,12
June2014.Web.02Dec.2015.
Medew,Julia."Earlycancerscreeningsaveslives,justaskLia."Age[Melbourne,Australia]10
Oct.2015:11.OpposingViewpointsinContext.Web.10Dec.2015.
"RiskFactorsforCancer."NationalCancerInstitute.NationalCancerInstitute,29Apr.2015.
Web.
13Dec.2015.
"Vitamincouldpreventskincancers:study."SydneyMorningHerald[Sydney,Australia]23
Oct.2015:14.OpposingViewpointsinContext.Web.10Dec.2015.
WhatAretheDifferentTypesofCancerTreatment?AmericanCancerSociety,Inc.,05Feb.
2015.Web.06Dec.2015.
"WhatIsCancer?"
WhatIsCancer?
CancerTreatmentCentersofAmerica,01Jan.2001.Web.
11
Dec.2015.
"WorldCancerDay."
WorldCancerDay
.UnionforInternationalCancerControl,04Feb.

Watkins

2013.Web.11Dec.2015.

Watkins

S-ar putea să vă placă și