Intro to Cancer (FS - Week 7) Flashcards
What is cancer?
a cellular disease caused by uncontrolled division of abnormal cells - it arises from mutations in normal cell DNA
What is a tumour
lumps of tissue formed by growth of abnormal or damaged cells - they can be malignant or benign
What does metastasis mean
tumours that travel to distant organs to form new tumours
Name 5 genetic changes in cells that can cause cancer
- error during cell division
- DNA damage due to harmful substances in the environment e.g. chemical in tobacco
- hereditary
- loss of ability to eliminate cells with damaged DNA before they turn cancerous
- accumulation of genetic changes/mutations
Name 3 genes that contribute to cancer
- Proto-oncogenes - involved in normal cell growth - when mutated or over-activated they become cancer-causing genes (oncogenes) allowing cells to grow and survive when they shouldn’t
- tumour suppressor genes - control cell growth and division - mutations in TSGs may divide in an uncontrolled manner
- DNA repair genes - involved in fixing damaged DNA - cells with mutations in these genes develop additional mutations in other genes e.g. duplications or deletions of parts of chromosomes = cancer-causing
What is meant by the hallmarks of cancer
biological capabilities acquired during the multistep development of tumours
Name 6 properties of a cancer cell according to the hallmarks of cancer
- sustaining proliferative signalling
- evading growth suppressors
- activating invasion and metastasis
- enabling replicative immortality
- inducing angiogenesis
- resisting cell death
Name 2 emerging hallmarks of cancer
- deregulating cellular energetics
- avoiding immune destruction
What are carcinogens and how do they work?
substances, radiation or radionuclides that promote carcinogenesis. They work by interacting with a cells DNA and induce genetic mutations
Name 5 features of benign tumours
- small
- slow-growing
- non-invasive
- well-differentiated
- stay localised (can’t metastasize
Name 5 features of malignant tumours
- Large
- Fast-growing
- invasive
- poorly-differentiated
- metastasize
What is hyperplasia?
enlargement of an organ or tissue due to fast multiplying cells
What is dysplasia?
abnormal growth of cells/organs and/or abnormal cells or anatomical structure
What is meant by carcinoma in situ?
abnormal cells found only in the place where they first formed in the body, sometimes called stage 0 cancer but not cancer as it has not invaded nearby normal tissue
What are melanomas
arise in melanocytes (skin pigment) - they form solid tumours
What are gliomas and meningiomas
tumours of the brain and spinal cord
What are lymphomas
blood cancers of the immune system
What are leukemias
blood cancers that affect WBC in the bone marrow
What are myelomas
blood cancers of the immune system that affect plasma cells in the bone marrow
What are the stages of cancer
Stage refers to the size and extent
- Stage 0 - carcinoma in situ (small)
- Stage I - localised - hasn’t grown into nearby tissues
- Stage II - grown more deeply into nearby tissue
- Stage III - large and spread to surrounding tissue/lymph nodes
- Stage IV - cancer has metastasized
What is the TNM staging system
T - primary tumour - size and extent of primary tumour
N - regional lymph nodes - number of nearby lymph nodes that have cancer
M - distant metastasis - whether the cancer has metastasized
What does cancer grading tell us?
How quick the cancer is growing. The lower the grade the slower-growing it is
In terms of cancer diagnosis, what are tumour markers
tumour markers are anything present in or produced by cancer cells or other cells in response to cancer
Name 4 diagnostic imaging tests
- X-ray
- MRI
- Mammography
- PET scan