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 Healthy Steps For Cancer Prevention
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Arkansas ranks 11th highest overall in cancer mortality rates among the 50
states and Washington, D.C.
The American Cancer Society estimates that 1,284,900 new cancer cases will
be diagnosed in the United States this year, including 14,200 in Arkansas with
half of the cancers occurring in the lung, prostate, breast, colon and rectum.
- 555,500 cancer deaths will occur in the U.S., including 6,200 in Arkansas.
- 2,200 new cases of lung cancer will be diagnosed among men and women
in Arkansas.
- 2,000 men and women will die of lung cancer in Arkansas.
- 1,500 new cases of colorectal cancer will be diagnosed among men and
women in Arkansas.
- 600 men and women will die of colorectal cancer in Arkansas.
- 2,000 new cases of breast cancer will be diagnosed among women in Arkansas.
- 400 women will die of breast cancer in Arkansas.
- 2,300 new cases of prostate cancer will be diagnosed among men in Arkansas.
- 400 men will die of prostate cancer in Arkansas.
- Cancer kills one out of every four Americans, surpassed only by heart
disease as the leading cause of death in this country.
Cancer is a group of more than 100 diseases. When cells in some areas of the
body divide without control, the excess tissue that develops is called a tumor.
Tumors may be cancerous and sometimes fatal, or they may be quite harmless.
A cancerous growth is called a malignant tumor, or malignancy.
Cells of malignant tumors duplicate continuously and very often quickly and
without control. One property of a malignant tumor is its ability to undergo
metastasis, the spread of cancerous cells to other parts of the body. Initially,
malignant cells invade surrounding tissues. As the cancer grows, it expands
and begins to compete with normal tissues for space and nutrients. Eventually,
the normal tissue decreases in size (atrophies) and dies. When cancer spreads,
it is still named after the part of the body where it started. For example,
if breast cancer spreads to the lungs, it is still breast cancer, not lung cancer.
When normal cells of the body divide and migrate (for example, skin cells
that multiply to heal a superficial cut), their further migration is inhibited
by contact on all sides with other skin cells. This is called contact inhibition.
Malignant cells do not conform to the rules of contact inhibition; they have
the ability to invade healthy body tissues with very few restrictions.
Following the nearby invasion, some of the malignant cells may detach from
the initial tumor and invade a body cavity or enter the blood or lymph (fluid
flowing through the lymphatic system to be returned to the blood). This latter
condition can lead to widespread metastasis. In the next step in metastasis,
those malignant cells that survive in the blood or lymph invade adjacent body
tissues and establish secondary tumors.
In the final stage of metastasis, the secondary tumors become vascularized;
that is, new networks of blood vessels develop to provide nutrients for their
further growth. Any new tissue, whether it results from repairing a wound, normal
growth or tumors, requires a blood supply. In all stages of metastasis, the
malignant cells resist the antitumor defenses of the body. The pain associated
with cancer develops when the growth puts pressure on nerves or blocks a passageway
so that secretions build up pressure.
Some cancers, such as blood cancers (leukemia), rarely form a tumor.
Types of Cancer
There are many different types of cancer. Several factors, including location
and how the cancerous cells appear under the microscope, determine how cancer
is diagnosed. For example, there are several forms of breast cancer, classified
according to where the tumors originate within the breast, and their tendency
to invade surrounding organs and tissue. All cancers, however, fall into one
of four broad categories:
Carcinomas are tumors that arise in the tissues that line the body's organs.
About 80% of all cancer cases are carcinomas.
Sarcomas are tumors that originate in bone, muscle, cartilage, fibrous tissue
or fat.
Leukemias are cancers of the blood or blood-forming organs.
Lymphomas affect the lymphatic system, a network of vessels and nodes that
acts as the body's filter. The lymphatic system distributes nutrients to blood
and tissue, and prevents bacteria and other foreign "invaders" from
entering the bloodstream. There are over 20 types of lymphoma.
Causes of Cancer
The vast majority of cancers--about 80%--are considered sporadic, meaning
that there is no clear cause. For some reason, certain normal genes begin to
mutate (change), multiplying rapidly and becoming malignant. There are several
environmental influences that may cause these gene mutations to occur. In fact,
a large number of cancers are preventable because most of these factors can
be controlled with healthy lifestyle choices.
Environmental causes of cancer include:
- Age: cancer is most common among people over the age of 50
- Diet: high-fat, high-cholesterol diets are proven risk factors for several
types of cancer, particularly colon cancer
- Obesity: although no clear link has been established, research indicates
obesity may be a contributing factor to some cancers.
- Cigarettes greatly increase the lung cancer risk, even among non-smokers
forced to inhale secondhand smoke. Other tobacco products, like pipes and chewing
tobacco, are linked to cancers of the mouth, tongue and throat.
- Long-term exposure to chemicals like asbestos, radon and benzene
- Exposure to high levels of radiation
- Harmful ultraviolet rays from the sun are directly linked to melanoma
and other forms of skin cancer
- Some viruses, including hepatitis B and C, human papillomaviruses (HPV),
and the Epstein-Barr virus, which causes infectious mononucleosis, have been
associated with increased cancer risk
- Immune system diseases, like AIDS, can make one more susceptible to
some cancers
The other 20% of cancers are hereditary. This means that the abnormal gene
responsible for causing the cancer is passed from parent to child, posing a
greater risk for that type of cancer in all descendants of the family. However,
just because someone has a cancer-causing gene doesn't mean they will automatically
get cancer. If hereditary cancer is suspected, family members should consider
genetic counseling and testing to determine their risk. Regular cancer screenings
are recommended for high-risk families so that if cancer does occur, it will
be diagnosed in the early stages, when it's most responsive to treatment.
Signs of hereditary cancer include:
- Several relatives with cancer
- Cancers that occur at an earlier age than normal
- Multiple or bilateral cancers: for example, a person with breast cancer
who also develops ovarian cancer
- Rare or unusual types of cancer
- Ethnic background: some cancers are more common among certain population
groups
Symptoms of Cancer
Unfortunately, many types of cancer don't display any obvious symptoms or
cause pain until well advanced. Because early-stage cancer symptoms tend to
be subtle, they are often mistaken for signs of other, less-threatening diseases.
Here are the seven warning signs of cancer:
- Changes in bowel or bladder habits
- A sore that does not heal
- Unusual bleeding or discharge
- Thickening or lump in the breast or any other part of the body
- Indigestion or difficulty swallowing
- An obvious change in a wart or mole
- A nagging cough or hoarseness
Some symptoms are specific to certain types of cancer, such as difficult urination
for prostate cancer, or flu-like symptoms for acute leukemias. Don't be afraid
to discuss unusual symptoms with your doctor! Diagnostic tests are available
for most common cancers. If diagnosed early, your chances of surviving cancer
are greatly increased.
Prevention of Cancer
More than 50% of cancers can be prevented by avoiding environmental risk factors
like smoking, sun exposure, alcohol abuse and poor nutrition. Of course, things
like age, race, gender and family history cannot be changed, but knowing your
personal cancer risk can help you devise a prevention strategy with regular
screenings and healthy lifestyle choices. Having one or more risk factors for
cancer doesn't mean you will get cancer. In fact, many people considered high-risk
never develop cancer while others with no known risk factors become ill.
To learn more about how to reduce your risk of cancer, check out the following:
The American Cancer Society provides comprehensive and reliable information
that addresses cancer prevention and detection at:
http://www.cancer.org/docroot/PED/ped_1.asp?sitearea=PED&level=1
National Cancer Institute, Division of Cancer Prevention- another good source
of research based information
http://www3.cancer.gov/prevention/
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