Cancer - Lecture 25 Flashcards
What was the leading cause of death in 2007?
Cancer; it surpassed cardiovascular disease
Most three common diseases in Canada
1) Heart Disease
2) Diabetes
3) Cancer
Rates of Lung Cancer
On the decline because smoking rates down
What is cancer?
Out of control growth of cells spreading into new areas of the body
What percentages of cancers are preventable and how?
50% of cancers are preventable through change in lifestyle
What’s different about these new cells that are growing?
No longer behave like the original host cell.
Malignant?
Cancerous cells
Benign
Non-cancerous cells
Characteristics of Benign Tumours
Slow growing; non-invading cells
Characteristics of Malignant Tumours
Grow fast or slow; spread to other organs and tissues
Metastasese?
Spreading of the cancer cells
Can Benign Tumours Metastasize?
No; they stay in their own capsule. If it spreads it’s cancer.
The medical term for cancer
Malignant Neoplasm
Malignant Neoplasm?
Growth and spread of abnormal cells that don’t look like regular cells.
How is the type of cancer named?
Cancer is named based on where the neoplasm (abnormal cancerous cells) originated from not where it spread to.
Most common cancers that metastasize?
Lung, colorectal, breast and prostate.
What is Hyperplasia?
Growth of cells in localized area. Not yet considered cancer, but it’s caused by mutation.
What is Mutation?
When something goes wrong when cells replicate
What is Atypical Hyperplasia?
Very unusual hyperplasia; a second mutation
Point Mutation?
A certain trigger for that mutation; smoking, drinking, etc.
Does Atypical Hyperplasia mean cancer?
Not yet cancer, but pretty close.
Carcinoma
Basically another term for saying cancer under the microscope
Carcinoma in Situ?
Cells are contained; no longer look like host cell and can become cancerous.
Can you do anything at the carcinoma in situ stage?
Because cells are growing inward there’s an opportunity to cut the abnormal cells out.
Microinvasive?
Cells have broken out of contained region and can now metastasize and replicate
What to do once in Microinvasive stage?
Chemotherapy, drugs; only delays death not permanent cure.
What’s the trigger for cancer?
Genetics; shift or damage in genetic code causes a spread.
Oncogenes?
Genes involved in normal cell growth become mutated (genes of cancerous cells) and replicate and spread abnormal cells.
Tumour Supressor Genes
Slow down cancer but DNA changes make the genes lead to uncontrollable cell growth.
What is a Tumour Microenvironment?
Tumour gets it’s own blood supply and nutrients in order to support replication and spreading
What does the Tumour Microenvironment have to stop it
Killer T-cells.
How does the Immune System interact with Cancer?
Side effects of cancer weaken immune system.
How do cancer treatments help immune system?
If the immune system can’t catch the cancer cells, the treatments can eliminate them.
How do our genes affect our response to cancer
Most people have genes that can easily defeat cancer that shows up, but others are non-responsive meaning they can’t fight it off
What does having genes that have no response to cancer mean when doing cancer treatment?
Genes that don’t respond to cancer means they don’t respond to chemotherapy either.
What determines our response to cancer cells?
Our genetic background in cancer.
What are some onco causing agents?
Heredity, UV, Chemicals, Viruses, Smoking, Cells dividing
Dysplastic cells?
1 or 2 benign mutation cells that are on the way to becoming malignant (Atypical Hyperplasia)
What region of abnormal cell growth is considered stage 1-4
Carcinoma in situ and Invasive Cancer.
What is a sign of stage 4 cancer?
Cancer has spread into the bloodstream
Stage 0/1 of Cancer
Cancer cells are present but it’s localized to a small area.
Stage 2 of Cancer
Cancer grows but doesn’t spread
What’s the difference in stage 0/1 and 2
Size difference in cells.
What stage does the cancer cells start to get a blood supply
Stage 2
Stage 3 of Cancer
Cancer gets larger and can spread to lymph nodes or other tissues
Stage 4
Cancer leaves tumour and metastasizes in different organs and lymph nodes and bloodstream.
What are lymph nodes and how do they play a role in cancer?
Lymph nodes contain white blood cells that try to fight off the cancer; generally fails and tends to metastasize in the lymphs.
Risk Factors for Skin Cancer
- Fair Skin, Light eyes or fair hair
- History of sunburn
- Family history of melanoma
How can you tell if a mole is skin cancer or not
If it lacks the circular symmetry.
What does having a lot of skin tags indicate
People with a lot of skin tags are likely unable to have genes that fight off mutations.
Where does breast cancer start in?
Commonly in the ducts, sometimes in the lobules.
What hormone fuels breast cancer?
Estrogen
Ductal Carcinoma in situ
Abnormal growth of cells in ducts that have not yet spread is treatable
Invasive Ductal Carcinoma %
80% of cancer originating here.
Invasive Lobular Carcinoma %
15% of cancer originating here.
Triple Negative Cancer
More aggressive type of breast cancer
What’s bad about Triple Negative Cancer
Does not react to hormone replacement or radiation.
Mutation of BRCA1 Gene
Does not allow to fight off breast cancer
Each stage of cancer predicts what?
The likelihood of survival; decreases as you move to a new stage.
Treatment costs?
The cost of treatment increases as your survival rate goes down.
Who is at risk?
2/5 Canadians develop cancer during lifetime
How does age impact risk of cancer
The longer you live the likelier chance you have of developing cancer; exposure to toxins
Number of new cases of cancer peaks at what age?
80
When should cancer be screened for if new diagnosis peaks at age 80
Start screening at 40.
The most common Cancer for Females and Males
Breast and Prostate respectively.
*Cancers with the biggest death rates
Brain, Lung, Prostate, Breast, Pancreatic
Seven Warning Signs of Cancer
C.A.U.T.I.O.N
C in caution
Change in Bowel Movements
A in Caution
A sore that doesn’t heal
U in Caution
Unusual bleeding or discharge
T in Caution
Thickening of lump in breast, testis, or elsewhere
I in Caution
Indigestion or difficulty swallowing
O in Caution
Obvious Change in wart or mole
N in Caution
Nagging cough or hoarseness
What lifestyle factors are contributing to cancer risk
Unsafe sex, alcohol, smoking,
How does Exercise prevent cancer?
Because cancer cells hate immune cells, exercising increases our immune system health to fight back.
What cancers are likely to be prevented by exercise?
Colorectal Cancer, Lung Cancer, Endometrial and Prostate.
How many METS (energy expenditure above RMR) per week decreases cancer risk
80 MET Minutes/wk
What are some cancer treatments
- Hormone Therapy (Blocking estrogen in breast)
- Surgery
- Bone Marrow Transplantation
- Chemotherapy
- Targeted Therapy
- Radiation Therapy
- Immunotherapy