CancerBio 1 Flashcards
When did the United States’ ‘War on Cancer’ begin?
President Nixon declared the war on cancer in 1971.
What type of Cancer kills the most Americans each year? How has this changed over the years? What may explain these changes?
Lung and bronchial cancer. stomach cancer was very common in 1980, fridges and diet. lung increases relating to smoking
How many Americans died from stomach cancer in 1930? 2019? What is behind this decline?
stomach cancer accounted for about 24.6% of cancer deaths in the 1930s. Globally, in 2019 there were 27,895 deaths related to stomach cancer. The decline is likely linked to food safety via refrigeration and safety protocols.
Who was Sidney Farber? Where did he work?
Was a doctor at Boston childrens hospital who was placed as the doctor of Robert Sandler. aminopterin
Where does the word ‘Cancer’ come from?
From the word crab in greek, karkinos, which in latin becomes cancer because with your eye, the mass of cancer cells is a blob with branches reaching out. It appeared to crawl around like a crab.
Who was Aelius Galenus? What contributions did he make to medicine?
Claudius Galen was an ancient roman physician. He theorized that a lack of mellancolia gave rise to cancer.
Who was Andreas Vesalius? What contributions did he make to medicine?
First details maps of the interior of the human body. He found discrepencies from galens writings. Could not find black bile. The first real look that something inside the body has gone wrong, not exterior.
What is ALL? CML?
ALL = Acute Lymphoblastic Leukimia no rbc. CML = chronic myelogenous leukimia more rbc (a bone marrow cancer)
What experimental drug did Robert Sandler receive in 1947?
Aminopterin. Starved white blood cells of crucial nutrients. Found that it sent him into remission.
Who was Rudolph Virchow? What is he well-known for discovering?
Had a theory on cell. He discovered cell division. Found that cancer cells came from uncancerous cells. So cut them from the body.
omnis cellula e cellula “Every cell from another cell”
Who was William Halsted?
A surgeon who was very good at his job. Ended up at john hopkins focusing on breast cancer. He figured cancer grew outwards and the roots had gone beyond his incisions. So he wanted to cut out more. A radical mastectomy.
The problem was because the patients often relapsed with cancer in other areas of the body. No matter how radical or how much the surgeon cut out, it seemed to keep coming back, as if it leap frogged over the incision.
Who was Emil Grubbe?
A medical student who began experimenting with a new form of radiation called x-rays. He wanted them to target tumors. It did cause a breast tumor to shrink.
Who was John Lawrence?
iodine 131
A physicist who is known for his work in starting nuclear medicine. He used radioactive isotopes as medical treatment.The half life of iodine 131 is 8 days. A shorter half life decreases exposure time to the patient. The radiation is still powerful but for a short exposure time so it decreases the harm in other tissues.
side effects of x-ray therapy?
In high doses it burned, scarred, blinded, and in some cases caused cancer. Grubbe got radiation poisoning losing hand and upper lip. A main problem was that it was only good for localized cancers.
What is a hiding site for leukemic cells?
The central nervous system, the brain and spinal cord. blood brain barrier prevents immune response in brain
Who was Paul Ehrlich?
A scientist who studied how cells could be dyed with selectivity. He wanted to target sick cells and not healthy cells. He developed drugs (antidotes catered to the disease) called magic bullets. First modern drugs. He made salvarsan. Chemicals could fit into other chemicals like keys into locks. Chemicals could cure diseases, magic bullets
Hematoxylin (blue/purple) is a naturally occurring chemical used to dye the nuclei of cells. Eosin is a red dye used to stain cytoplasm, red blood cells, collagen, and muscle fibers.
What observation was made in those solders that survived exposure to sulfur mustard? Why did doctors need to look at the bone marrow of patients?
The disease took out the white blood cells. They looked at the bone marrow of patients and found that there were no white blood cells left. Has an inhibitory effect on white blood cells, look to see if it could stop cancer of the blood, worked in secret bc illegal. Used derivative nitrogen-mustard. It did kill cancer but also killed the patient. May be on of the magic bullets.
white blood cell percent
Never Let Monkey Eat Bananas
Nephiles 60, lymphocytes 30, Monocytes 6, easiniphils 3. basophils 1
aminopterin
Aminopterin is a folic acid derivative that is competitive for the binding site of folate. Folic acid is a B vitamine that helps to make new cells.It transfers carbon units during dna methylation, purine and pyrimidine synthesis, and changes in amino acids.
What radio program popularized the Jimmy Fund fund?
The radio show was called Truth or Consequences. The Jimmy Fund was started to start funding the cancer program and hospital that Farber wanted to build. They raised 200,000 dollars. The fundraising was important because the type of research and care that Farber wanted to do required more funds than he had. The taboos around cancer made raising money difficult but this was one of the programs that helped destigmatize cancer and help others to join the fight.
VAMP
-vincristine?
A chemotherapy drug used to stop the cancer cells from dividing. It binds to the microtubules in the miotic spindle. This stops the cell in metaphase which leads to cell death
-amethopterin?
Also known as methotrexate
-mercaptopurine halting the production of purine synthesis.
-Prednisone is an anti-inflammatory
What contributions did mary lasker have towards cancer research?
Mary Lasker was a huge advocate for public health concerns. She was an advocate for many diseases but played a prominent role in the fight against cancer. At a young age she was exposed to a mastectomy from breast cancer and was since invested in preventing diseases. She was very wealthy and had the political prowess to be exactly what Farber needed. They worked together to get funding for Farbers research. Their efforts helped the progress of cancer research immensely through a new facility and more intense cancer research.
