What is Cancer?

Cancer is the abnormal growth of cells. Cancers arise from an organ or body structure and are composed of tiny cells that have lost the ability to stop growing. This growing mass of cells then projects from that organ or body structure until it becomes large enough to be noticed by a patient or physician. Occasionally, cancer may be detected " incidentally' by a laboratory test or x-ray that is, the test or x-ray may have been ordered for purpose of routine screening or for an entirely different reason; in such a case, the cancer gets notices almost by accident. At this point it may be referred to as a " mass"," growth", " tumor", " nodule", " spot", "lump", "lesion" or malignancy."

In general, the Cancer must reach a size of 1 centimeter, or be made up of 1 million cells, before it is detected. Exceptions to this general rule include Cancer of the blood and bone marrow- called Lymphomas, Leukemias and Multiple Myeloma - which frequently do not produce a mass but will be evident on laboratory tests: these cancers still require more than a million cells to be present before they are detected.


WHERE IN THE BODY CAN CANCER DEVELOP ?

Cancer can occur anywhere in the doby, Any area of the bosy that you can name can be the target for a cancer. Some cancers even arise in parts of the bosy that contained structures only when the person was just an embrto- just weeks after conception. Cancer cells- those abnormal cells that have lost the ability to stop.

Liquid Tumors
Lymphoma
Leukemia
Multiple myeloma


Solid Tumors
Lung cancer
Breast cancer
Prostate cancer
Colon cancer
Rectal cancer
Bladder cancer
Brain cancer

Environmental Factors That Cancer Development

Lifestyle factors

Cigarette smoking
Diet high in fact and / or in smoked or salted meats and fish
Alcohol use
Obesity
Lack of physical activity


Exposures

Radiation
Radon
Certain drugs, including chemotherapy agents, hormones, certain chemicals, Certain infections


Major Components of Tumor Staging

Tumor Size
Tumor Location
Number of lymph nodes involved
Extent of spread of a Tumor
Depth of Tumor invasion into an organ or tumor thickness
Size of the lyph nodes( for Head & Neck Cancers)