Almost everyone on the planet will know someone who has died from cancer but the cure will come; medical research continues to advance in it’s war with this disease that plagues humanity. When you think about the impact that a cure would bring to this global problem it sends a shudder through your spine. The causes for cancer seem to be many but despite all the knowledge we gain, it is still almost impossible to know if or when a person will contract it.
There are theories that we all have it and it just takes something to start it off, but what is cancer? This is a disease where unhealthy cells grow, divide and then expand into other cells, often transferring to parts of the body using a method called metastasis.
The malignant property of cancer differentiates it from benign tumors which limit their growth and do not invade or metastasize. Some benign tumors, however, are capable of becoming malignant. Fortunately, this is a disease which is not as prevalent in the young but as you age the risk of cancer increases; it is responsible for thirteen percent of all deaths around the world. Cancerous cells may have been transformed by radiation or poison for example and this creates genetic abnormality in those cells which then continue to grow and divide.
The cause can also be the responsibility of faulty DNA replication or a genetic trait inherited from parents which means a person can be born with them. It would seem some people are more susceptible to it than others and it may be their genetic makeup and their exposure to certain carcinogens that is responsible.
Research into the cause of cancer continues around the globe and is the disease most frequently studied on a regular basis. More knowledge is being acquired about cancer each year. More information is being gathered about all illnesses and why some people are more prone to certain conditions. Knowledge like this could enable more people avoid contracting cancer in the first place.
Over recent years, concern has been made public over the possibility that our dietary habits may be partly to blame for the incidence of the condition. Foods that could be a problem are Salt, sugar, saturated fat and cholesterol. Recent studies have shown that calcium received from dairy products can be harmful to men and could encourage the onset of prostate cancer.
Cancer does not have any prejudice when it comes to invading a person’s body as it can strike anywhere. The problem is that it can also be insidious and a person may have it for some time before it is diagnosed. Cures for many types have advanced in recent years and are more likely to be successful if the cancer is found in its early stages. For those people diagnosed with cancer, my heart goes out to them and their families; however, the constant research is paying off and the life expectancy of cancer victims is increasing all the time.