Ch. 10 Flashcards
Cancer
Leading cause of suffering and death in the developed world
How is cancer a form of Darwinian evolution
Tumor development has cells with heritable change that have a survival advantage, so they outcompete their neighbors
Cancer is a collection of more then _ diseases
100
Is cancer age related
yes
what modifies the risk of developing cancer and the response to treatment
-Environment
-Heredity
-Behavior
Epigenetic
Study of how behavior and environment cause changes that affect gene mutation
Cancer is derived from the greek word
Karkinoma (Crab)
Karkinoma/hippocrates use crab to describe
projections extending from tumors into adjacent tissues
Tumor used to
refer to any swelling caused by inflammation
Tumor now
reserved for describing new growth or neoplasm
Are all tumors cancer?
No
what is a non cancerous tumor
Benign
what tumors contain cancer
malignant
What kind of cells do benign tumors have
-well-differentiated cells
-well-organized stroma
Benign tumors retain
-normal tissue structure
-don’t invade beyond capsule
Can benign tumors be dangerous
yes
-eg. benign meningioma at eh base of the skull can compress brain tissue
what tumors have cancer
malignant tumor
Malignant tumors grow
-rapidly
-abnormal organization
Hall mark of cancer
Anaplasia
Anaplasia
loss of cellular differentation
Pleomorphic
vary in size and shape
Malignant tumor structure
large, disorganized stroma, with an abnormal structure
Metastasis
ability to spread far beyond the tissue of origin/most deadly characteristic of malignant tumors
Characteristics or malignant tumors
-Rapid growth
-Anaplasia
-Pleomorphic
-Large stroma
-Metastasis
Cellular differentiation
process in which a stem cell alters from one type to a differentiated one
-usually more specialized
Malignant tumor types
-Carcinomas
-Adenocarcinomas
Carcinomas
Cancers arising from epithelial tissue
Ademocarcinomas
cancers arising from ductal or glandular structures
Benign
-Grow slow
-well-defined capsule
-not incisive
-well differentiated
-low miotic index
-don’t metastasize
Malignant
-grow rapidly
-not encapsulated
-invasive
-high mitotic index
-can metastasis
Situ
in natural or original place
Carcinoma in situ
preinvasive epithelial tumors of glandular or squamous cells origin
cancers develop- and accumulate
incrementally
genic lesions (mutations)
CIS: 3 fates
- Remain stable for a long time
- Progress to invasive/metastatic cancers
- regress and dissapear
high grade lesions are more likely
to become invasive
CIS cancer cells
have not broken through basement membrane or invade surrounding stroma
-not considered malignant
CIS vary from
low grade to high grade dysplasia
What is a disease of aging
Cancer
what is required for cancer to develop
multiple mutations
Mutation
cell acquires characteristics that provide an advantage overing neighboring cells
advantage of mutations
increased growth rate and/or decreases apoptosis
Result of mutation
-decreased need for growth factor to multiply
-anchorage independence to spread through body (metastasis)
-immortality
immortality in cells means
no apoptisis
Fundamental cancer concepts
- cancer is a genetic disease arising from multiple mutations
- tumor microenvironment is a mix of cells (cancer and benign) and their secretions
3 cancer stages
- tumor initiation
- tumor premotion
- tumor progression
Tumor initiation
-producing initial cancer cell
-first stage of development
-depends on specific mutations
Tumor premotion
-population of cancer cells expands with diversity of phenotypes
- additional mutatuions
Tumor progression
-spread of tumor to adjacent and distal sites
- governed by more mutations and changing microenvironments
2 types of mutations
-small scale changes
-large scale changes
Small scale changes are also
point mutations
large scare changes are also
translocations
Point mutations
Alteration of one or a few nucleotide base pairs
result of point mutations
profound effects on activity of resulted proteins
Driver mutations
mutations that drive the progression of cancer
passenger mutations
mutations that don’t contribute to malignant phenotype
-random events
small scale includes
driver mutations and passenger mutations
large scale: chromosome translocations
-large changes in chromosome structure
-section of one chromosome is translocate
gene amplification
-instead of two normal copies of a gene 10s-100s of copies are present
Why does gene amplification make some many copies
One section of chromosome is translocated reshuffling the order of nucleotides making new sections
Gene amplification example
gene expression of HER2 proteins
Clonal proliferation model
selective advantage cancer cell has over neighboring cells
what’s an advantage of clonal proliferation model
it can replicate faster than nonmutant neighbors
What is the action of clonal proliferation model
increasingly rapid cell division and impaired DNA repair mechanisms of cancer cells
what does the rapid dividing and repairing mechanisms of clonal proliferation create
continuing accumulation of mutations throughout progression to mist aggressive metastatic lesion
Transformation definition
process by which a normal cell becomes a cancer cell
Transformation causes malignancy
by progressive accumulation of genetic changes that alter basic nature of cells
Individual cancer cells develop
its own set of mutations
Result of individual cell mutations
-Gnomically heterogeneous mix of cells
-Subsets accumulate more mutations increasing the cells malignant potential
Cancer cells that don’t accumulate a critical set of mutations
lose to competition and die
How is cancer similar to wound healing
it has an initial proinflammatory response
cancer cell proliferation triggers
proinflammatory response by itself and adjacent nonmalignant cells
Like with wound healing mediators recruit
-inflammatory or immune cells (T+B, Macrophages)
-Cells associated with tissue repair (Fibroblasts, adipocytes, mesenchymal stem cells, and endothelial cells)
What causes abnormal wound healing
recruited cells form a stroma (tumor microenvironment)
Effect of Abnormal wound healing
-cancer cells increase proliferation
-become more heterogeneous (Diverse)
Process of abnormal wound healing
-great deal of cancer cell death
-surviving cells are more aggressive
-Many take of a monastic phenotype
Cancer cell needs uncontrolled growth through
sustained proliferation signals
sustained proliferation signals
-Pro-oncogene control
-oncogene mutations
result of sustained proliferation signals
blocking of body’s mechanism to stop uncontrolled growth
First hallmark of cancer
uncontrolled cellular proliferation
Normal cells proliferative phase
runs in response to growth factor
Growth factor
binds to specific receptors on cells surface and activates intracellular signaling pathways affecting DNA synthesis and cellular growth