Cancer Research News

Our Current Topic: Taking Care Of Yourself While Dealing With Cancer

You Can Help Yourself

While receiving professional care, cancer research has shown that there are steps you can take which may improve the quality of your life during therapy and even improve the benefits of the treatment itself. Cancer is a word that brings fear to nearly all who hear it and health statistics show the cancer rate is on the rise in the US. By arming yourself with knowledge from the latest cancer research, you can help yourself see the battle through.

Cancer is a class of diseases characterized by uncontrolled cell division and the ability of these cells to invade other tissues, either by direct growth into adjacent tissue, referred to as invasion or by migration of cells to distant sites, called metastasis. Cancer research focuses on this unregulated growth is caused by damage to DNA, resulting in mutations to vital genes that control cell division, among other functions. One or more of these mutations, which can be inherited or acquired, can lead to uncontrolled cell division and tumor formation. Tumor (which means "swelling" in Latin) refers to any abnormal mass of tissue, but may be either malignant (cancerous) or benign (noncancerous). Only malignant tumors are capable of invading other tissues or metastasizing.

Cancer can cause many different symptoms, depending on the site and character of the malignancy and whether there is metastasis. A definitive diagnosis usually requires the microscopic examination of tissue obtained by biopsy. Once diagnosed, cancer is usually treated with surgery, chemotherapy and/or radiation. Advances in cancer research focus on the improvement of effectiveness and precision of these procedures.

If untreated, most cancers eventually cause death; cancer is one of the leading causes of death in developed countries. Most cancers can be treated and many cured, especially if treatment begins early. Many forms of cancer are associated with environmental factors, which may be avoidable. For example, cancer research has shown that smoking tobacco leads to more cancers than any other environmental factor.

Most cancers are initially recognized either because signs or symptoms appear or through screening. Neither of these lead to a definitive diagnosis, which usually requires a biopsy. Some cancers are discovered accidentally during medical evaluation of an unrelated problem. Because of this, you should always have a regular screening as directed by your doctor. Cancer research continues to show that early detection is a critical factor in effective treatment.

This site includes resources on some information made available from the latest cancer research. Please visit the resources listed on this site and educate yourself on the latest benefits of cancer research if you or someone you know and love is dealing with cancer.