Tumour Pathology

Question 1

Leukaemia is a tumour of
Red blood cells/White blood cells
and is
Benign/Malignant

Answer 1

White blood cells

Malignant

Question 2

Tumour of the lymphoid tissue causes

Answer 2

Lymphoma (malignant)

Question 3

A benign tumour of the melanocytes can cause

Answer 3

Naevus (mole)

Question 4

A malignant tumour of the melanocytes can cause

Answer 4

Melanoma

Question 5

State a malignant tumour of the central nervous system.

Answer 5

Astrocytoma

Question 6

State a malignant tumour of the peripheral nervous system.

Answer 6

Schwannoma

Question 7

State what tumour suppressor genes do.

Answer 7

A gene that protects the cell from cancer.

Question 8

State 3 cancers that can occur due to loss of tumour suppressor genes.

Answer 8

Retinoblastoma (Rb) - Cancer of the retina in young children
Adenomatous polyposis (APC) - Cell adhesion protein
BRCA1 - Breast cancer

Question 9

State what is meant by an ‘oncogene’

Answer 9

A gene that has the potential to cause cancer

Question 10

Give some examples of oncogenes. (5)

Answer 10

• BRaf
• Cyclin D1
• ErbB2
• Myc
• KRas and NRas

Question 11

Describe how cancer can alter cellular function.

Answer 11

• Loss of cell-to-cell adhesion
• Altered cell-to-matrix adhesion
• Production of tumour-related proteins, such as biomarkers :
  
  • Onco-fetal proteins
  • Oncogenes
  • Growth factors and receptors
  • Immune checkpoint inhibitors

Question 12

State what the clinical biomarker alpha-fetoprotein does.

Answer 12

Screens for teratoma of testes and hepatocellular carcinoma

Question 13

State what the clinical biomarker carcino-embryonic antigen (CEA) does.

Answer 13

Screens for colorectal cancer

Question 14

State what the clinical biomarker oestrogen receptor does.

Answer 14

Screens for breast cancer

Question 15

State what the clinical biomarker prostate specific antigen does.

Answer 15

Screens for prostate cancer

Question 16

Tumour growth is a balance between

Answer 16

Apoptosis and angiogenesis

Question 17

What do more blood vessels in a tumour do to the prognosis?

Answer 17

Makes the prognosis worse

Question 18

State 4 modes of spread of cancer

Answer 18

• Blood spread
• Local spread
• Lymphatic spread
• Trans-coelomic spread

Question 19

Define the term ‘metastasis’.

Answer 19

When cancer spreads to different part of the body from where it originated.

Question 20

State some common sites of metastasis.

Answer 20

Bone - Axial skeleton 
Brain 
Liver 
Lung 
Adrenal gland 
Momentum/peritoneum

Question 21

State some uncommon sites of metastasis.

Answer 21

Spleen
Kidney
Skeletal muscle
Heart

Question 22

Describe trans-coelomic spread of cancer.

Answer 22

• Special form of local spread
• Spreading of tumour cells across body cavities
• Tumours of lung, stomach, colon and ovary show trans-coelomic spread

Question 23

State some common metastatic relations. (4)

Answer 23

• Breast cancer leads to metastasis in the bone
• Prostate cancer leads to metastasis in the bone
• Colorectal cancer leads to metastasis in the liver
• Ovarian cancer leads to metastasis in the omentum