CANCER AS A GENETIC DISEASE AT THE CELLULAR LEVEL Flashcards
What do most cancers arise from ?
A single abnormal, classified according to the cell type from which they arise: e.g.
epithelial cells; carcinoma
connective tissue/muscle; sarcoma
blood cell; leukaemia
What are moles on the skin?
Moles are cells which have grown out of control but are contained to a location by a capsule
Many normal cells cease to divide when ?
They mature into terminally differentiated cells
Cells cease to divide when?
A cell is stressed or subjected to DNA damage
What is the Hayflick limit ?
Cells have a limited number of times that they can divide before theyundergo replicative senescene
In terms of telomeres, what do we lose with age?
As cells divide over time telomeres shortenings, and eventually cell division stops
What does a primary tumour arise from ?
A primary tumour arises from a cell which has undergone a heritable change to allow it to outgrow its neighbour
Tumour cell growth can be regarded as a micro-evolutionary process whereby growth advantage is given by:
- increased rates of cell division
- increased genetic instability
- increased cell survival
- increased clonal cell numbers
What do normal cells not pass ?
The selection barrier e.g. low oxygen levels
Cells with increased genetic instability may acquire ?
Heritable mutations which allow them to survive
What will provide a new blood supply to the tumour cells ?
The production of angiogenesis factors
What happens to cells with too much genetic instability?
This results in apoptosis
