Cancer is a condition where cells in a specific part of the body grow and reproduce uncontrollably. The cancerous cells can invade and destroy surrounding healthy tissue, including organs.it is class of diseases characterized by out-of-control cell growth. Cancer known medically as a malignant neoplasm, is a broad group of diseases involving unregulated cell growth. In cancer, cells divide and grow uncontrollably, forming malignant tumors, and invading nearby parts of the body. The cancer may also spread to more distant parts of the body through the lymphatic system or bloodstream. Not all tumors are cancerous; benign tumors do not invade neighboring tissues and do not spread throughout the body. There are over 200 different known cancers that affect humans.The causes of cancer are diverse, complex, and only partially understood .
What Causes Cancer?
Many things are known to increase the risk of cancer, including tobaccouse, dietary factors, certain infections, exposure to radiation, lack of physical activity, obesity, and environmental pollutants.These factors can directly damage genes or combine with existing genetic faults within cells to cause cancerous mutations. Approximately 5–10% of cancers can be traced directly to inherited genetic defects. Many cancers could be prevented by not smoking, eating more vegetables, fruits and whole grains, eating less meat and refined carbohydrates, maintaining a healthy weight, exercising, minimizing sunlight exposure, and being vaccinated against some infectious diseases.
Main Factors Responsible for Causing Cancer Are :
1. Chemicals
3. Infection
4. Radiation
5. Heredity
7. Hormones
Cancer symptoms are quite varied and depend on where the cancer is located, where it has spread, and how big the tumor is. Some cancers can be felt or seen through the skin - a lump on the breast or testicle can be an indicator of cancer in those locations. Skin cancer (melanoma) is often noted by a change in a wart or mole on the skin. Some oral cancers present white patches inside the mouth or white spots on the tongue.
Other cancers have symptoms that are less physically apparent. Some brain tumors tend to present symptoms early in the disease as they affect important cognitive functions. Pancreas cancers are usually too small to cause symptoms until they cause pain by pushing against nearby nerves or interfere with liver function to cause a yellowing of the skin and eyes called jaundice. Symptoms also can be created as a tumor grows and pushes against organs and blood vessels. For example, colon cancers lead to symptoms such as constipation, diarrhea, and changes in stool size. Bladder or prostate cancers cause changes in bladder function such as more frequent or infrequent urination.
As cancer cells use the body's energy and interfere with normal hormone function, it is possible to present symptoms such as fever, fatigue, excessive sweating, anemia, and unexplained weight loss. However, these symptoms are common in several other maladies as well. For example, coughing and hoarseness can point to lung or throat cancer as well as several other conditions.
When cancer spreads, or metastasizes, additional symptoms can present themselves in the newly affected area. Swollen or enlarged lymph nodes are common and likely to be present early. If cancer spreads to the brain, patients may experience vertigo, headaches, or seizures. Spreading to the lungs may cause coughing and shortness of breath. In addition, the liver may become enlarged and cause jaundice and bones can become painful, brittle, and break easily. Symptoms of metastasis ultimately depend on the location to which the cancer has spread.
Reducing your risk of cancer
You can reduce your risk of cancer by having a healthy lifestyle. Find out about stopping smoking, eating a healthy diet, keeping fit and drinking less alcohol.There are no proven ways to prevent cancer, but you can reduce your risk of getting it. Risk factors you can do something about include smoking and being overweight, and there are other things you can do to reduce your risk.
Healthy lifestyle
Leading a healthy lifestyle can help lower your risk of developing certain cancers. You can do this by:
• eating a healthy balanced diet
• maintaining a healthy weight
• drinking less alcohol
• stopping smoking
• protecting your skin from sun damage
Eating a healthy balanced diet
Stories about various foods and diets linked to preventing cancer are often in the news. This is because a lot of research is going on into diet and cancer. But it isn’t easy to study the link between diet and cancer because there are so many different factors involved, and cancer can take years to develop.
No single food or supplement can prevent cancer from developing. Overall, research shows a link between eating certain groups of foods (rather than any specific foods, vitamins or nutrients) and a reduction in cancer risk.
Eating a healthy balanced diet may lower your risk of developing cancer. A healthy balanced diet contains:
• plenty of fruit and vegetables: try to eat at least five portions a day
• plenty of bread, rice, potatoes, pasta and other starchy foods: choose wholegrain foods where possible as these contain more fibre
• some meat, fish, eggs, beans and other non-dairy sources of protein
• some milk and dairy foods
• just a small amount of foods and drinks high in fat or sugars, such as cakes, crisps and biscuits
Eating a healthy balanced diet will help make sure your body gets all the nutrients it needs.
Fibre
Evidence consistently suggests that eating plenty of fibre can reduce the risk of bowel cancer. Diets high in fibre can help keep your bowel healthy and prevent constipation.
Fibre-rich foods include wholegrain pasta, bread, breakfast cereals and rice. Pulses, fruit and vegetables are also good sources of fibre.
Red and processed meat
Meat is a good source of protein, vitamins and minerals, such as iron and zinc. But evidence shows that there is probably a link between eating red and processed meat, and the risk of bowel cancer. People who eat a lot of these meats have a higher risk of getting bowel cancer than people who eat small amounts.
Beef, pork and lamb are all red meat. Processed meats include bacon, sausages, salami and ham.
If you eat more than 90 grams of red or processed meat a day (the equivalent of about three thin-cut slices of roast beef, lamb or pork, where each slice is about the size of half a piece of sliced bread), it is recommended that you cut down to 70 grams. You can find out more about eating red and processed meat.
Beta-carotene supplements
Beta-carotene, often found in antioxidant supplements, has been found to increase the risk of lung cancer developing in smokers and people who have been heavily exposed to asbestos at work. It is possible that taking large amounts of beta-carotene supplements would also increase the risk of cancer in other people.
Maintaining a healthy weight
In England, over 60% of the population is overweight or obese. Being overweight or obese can increase your risk of some cancers, such as:
• bowel cancer
• pancreatic cancer
• oesophageal cancer
• breast cancer if you are a woman who has been through the menopause
• cancer of the womb (uterus)
• kidney cancer
Being a healthy weight can reduce your risk of developing cancer. You can find out whether you are a healthy weight by using the BMI healthy weight calculator.
You can find information and tips on how to start losing weight.
Drinking less alcohol
Drinking alcohol is known to increase your risk of some cancers, including:
• mouth cancer
• pharynx and larynx cancer
• oesophageal cancer
• colorectal cancer in men
• breast cancer
It is probably a cause of other cancers such as colorectal cancer in women and liver cancer.
Women shouldn't regularly drink more than 2-3 units of alcohol a day, and men shouldn't regularly drink more than 3-4 units a day.
"Regularly" means every day or on most days of the week. Use the alcohol unit calculator to find out how many units are in different alcoholic drinks.
Stopping smoking
Lung cancer is responsible for around a quarter of cancer deaths in the Worlds and 90% of lung cancer cases are related to smoking.
"Stopping smoking greatly cuts the risk of developing cancer . The earlier you stop, the greater the impact. But it's never too late to quit. People who quit smoking at 30 live nearly as long as non-smokers, and those who quit at 50 can still undo half the damage."
There is support to help you stop smoking.
Protect your skin from sun damage
Taking care in the sun so that you don't get burned is important for preventing skin cancer.
• Spend time in the shade between 11am and 3pm.
• Make sure you never burn.
• Cover yourself up with a T-shirt, hat and sunglasses.
• Take care not to let children get burned.
• Use sunscreen with a sun protection factor (SPF) of at least 15.
Keep an eye on any moles or freckles you have. If they change at all (for example, get bigger or begin bleeding), see your GP as this can be an early sign of cancer. The earlier skin cancer is caught, the easier it is to treat, so see your GP as soon as possible.
We need sunlight on our skin so that our bodies can produce vitamin D, which is essential for healthy bones. Read aboutsunlight and vitamin D to find out how much sunlight you need.
Know your body
It's important to know your body and recognise any changes, such as lumps or unexplained bleeding, and to get advice about whether they might be serious.
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