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Jenna Galliger

Dr. Cassel

ENG 1201-121

6 April 2020

Research Paper

Cancer has been around for many years and it is one of the top causes of death

worldwide. Although we know a lot about this disease there is still a need for research to be done

to learn more about it. For example, there is still not a known cure for this disease. Cancer has

affected millions of people throughout the years. Whether it be that they have the disease

personally or a family member or close friend has cancer. Many people do not know much about

cancer. They may have questions, like what are some of the treatments used for cancer, what are

the effects that the treatments have on the body, if it is possible to help prevent this disease and

what can help prevent it, and most importantly what cancer is? Unlike normal cells that divide at

specific time and will stop dividing at a certain point, cancer is cells that are abnormal because

they divide when they are not needed and do not stop dividing.

The human body is made up of cells that have many specific functions. The cells are

constantly dividing and dying. A cell will divide for specific reasons like when a cell is old or

damaged and a new one needs to take its place. Once a new cell is not needed it will stop

dividing. A cell is also able to start a process called apoptosis, which is where a cell kills itself

because it is old, damaged, or not needed. Cancer cells are different than normal cells. They are
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abnormal because they do not have the functions a normal cell would have, “In addition, cancer

cells are able to ignore signals that normally tell cells to stop dividing or that begin a process

known as programmed cell death, or apoptosis, which the body uses to get rid of unneeded cells”

(National Cancer Institute, “What Is Cancer”). Cancer cells will start dividing when they are not

needed, and they do not stop dividing because they do not get the signals to stop dividing like a

normal call would. They will continue to grow out of control and crowd the normal cells, which

can cause problems in the body.

Eventually the cancer

cells will divide so much that

they have to stack on each other

and will form a solid mass in the

body. These masses are called

tumors, which are just masses of

tissue. Most cancers will form a

(Fig 1) This is a picture of a tumor using the nearby normal cells
tumor, but some cancers like
to help it grow. (National Cancer Institute)
cancers of the blood usually will

not form tumors. There are two

different kinds of tumors. There are malignant tumors and there are benign tumors. A malignant

tumor is a tumor that can spread to different parts of the body, “In addition, as these tumors

grow, some cancer cells can break off and travel to distant places in the body through the blood

or the lymph system and form new tumors far from the original tumor” (National Cancer
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Institute, “What is Cancer”). A benign tumor is a tumor that will not spread throughout the body.

Also, once they are removed, they generally will not grow back . Most of the time benign tumors

are not that dangerous, but if there is a benign tumor in the brain, it can be very life threatening.

Cancer cells are able to control normal cells and blood vessels to help a tumor survive (Fig 1),

“For instance, cancer cells can induce nearby normal cells to form blood vessels that supply

tumors with oxygen and nutrients, which they need to grow. These blood vessels also remove

waste products from tumors” (National Cancer Institute, “What Is Cancer). Tumors also use the

immune system to help survive and grow by using cancer cells that can hide, which will keep the

immune system from killing it.

Cancer is not considered to just one disease. Cancer has many different kinds and each of

them are different in some respects. Cancer is also considered a genetic disease. It is considered a

genetic disease because cancer is caused by changes that have occurred in someone’s genes that

control how their cells function. “The genetic changes that contribute to cancer tend to affect

three main types of genes—proto-oncogenes, tumor suppressor genes, and DNA repair genes.

These changes are sometimes called “drivers” of cancer” (National Cancer Institute, “What Is

Cancer”) The gene proto-oncogene deal with a normal cells division, but when this gene is

changed, they can cause cancer cells to stay alive. The tumor suppressor genes are similar to the

proto-oncogenes because they also deal with a cells division. If the tumor suppressors are

changed, they can cause the cells divions to be out of control and not stop. The genes that are

DNA repair deal with fixing any damage that occurs in DNA. When this gene is changed it can

cause the cells to have even more mutations on top of this one. Over the years it has been found
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that specific genetic mutations happen in different types of cancer, “ Because of this, cancers are

sometimes characterized by the types of genetic alterations that are believed to be driving

them,”(National Cancer Institute, “What is Cancer”). Cancers are sometimes identified by their

genetic mutations, but a lot of the times it is by where they originally formed in the body.

When a cancer has spread from where it originally developed to another place in the body

it is called metastasis. If a cancer is metastatic it will have the same name of where it started

originally. For example, if someone originally had kidney cancer and it spread to the lungs it

would still be called kidney cancer. Metastatic cancer will usually look the same cells as the

original cancer, “metastatic cancer cells and cells of the original cancer usually have some

molecular features in common, such as the presence of specific chromosome changes” (National

Cancer Institute, “What Is Cancer”). When it is determined that a cancer has spread to different

places of the body it is described by a term called stage. This means that at whatever stage

someone is at is how much the cancer has spread, “For each type of cancer there are tests that

can be done to figure out the stage of the cancer. As a rule, a lower stage (such as a stage 1 or 2)

means that the cancer has not spread very much. A higher number (such as a stage 3 or 4) means

it has spread more. Stage 4 is the highest stage” (American Cancer Society, “What Is Cancer”).

Usually when cancer is metastatic its treatment is mostly focused to stop the spread of it. Most of

the people who actually die from cancer generally have metastatic cancer.

Just like there are many types of cancer, there are many types of treatment that are used.

The treatment that is used is determined on what the type of cancer it is. Some cancers are more

sensitive and work better with certain treatment and do not work well with others. Some of the
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most commonly known and used types of treatments are surgery, chemotherapy, and radiation

therapy. Surgery can be used to find out many things. It can be used to find out if the patient has

cancer and if it has spread at all. Surgery is also used to take a portion or all of a body part that

has cancer, “Curative or primary surgery is usually done when cancer is found in only one part of

the body, and it’s likely that all of the cancer can be removed. It is called "curative" because the

purpose of the surgery is to remove all of the cancer completely. In this case, surgery can be the

main treatment” (American Cancer Society, “How Surgery Is Used For Cancer”). If a patient has

a very large tumor, surgery is done to get rid of it. There are some cases where the tumor is

located near an important organ, which means that only part of the tumor is removed because it

is too dangerous to remove all of it. Many people who suffer with advance cancer have surgery

done to relive some of their pain, “Palliative surgery may also be used to treat pain when the pain

is hard to control with medicine. Palliative surgery helps ease problems caused by cancer and

helps people feel better, but because the cancer is usually in an advanced stage, it’s not done to

treat or cure the cancer itself” (American Cancer Society, “How Surgery Is Used For Cancer”).

Surgery has also been used for reconstructive purposes. For example, if a woman who suffers

from breast cancer gets a mastectomy, she may get a surgery to reconstruct her breasts.

Another very common treatment that is used is chemotherapy. Chemotherapy is actually

a broad term that means to use any kind of drug to fight a disease. Though most people only use

it when referring to cancer. There are many different drugs that is used for chemotherapy that all

work different from each other. Chemotherapy is used to kill the cancer cells all throughout the

body, “Chemo is considered a systemic treatment because the drugs travels throughout the body,
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and can kill cancer cells that have spread (metastasized) to parts of the body far away from the

original (primary) tumor” (American Cancer Society, “How Is Chemotherapy Used to Treat

Cancer”). Chemotherapy is a little different than other types of treatments. Chemotherapy will

travel all throughout the body to kill the cancer cell while other treatment will only kill the

cancer cells in a very specific area. In the best-case scenario chemotherapy is used to cure

someone of their cancer completely so that it does not return. Though it can be difficult to truly

know whether the cancer is fully cured until a few years has passed. It may not be possible to use

chemotherapy to cure the cancer. If this is the case then chemotherapy is used to try to control

the cancer, “If a cure is not possible, the goal of cancer treatment may be to control the disease.

In these cases, chemo is used to shrink tumors and/or stop the cancer from growing and

spreading. This can help the person with cancer feel better and live longer” (American Cancer

Society, “How Is Chemotherapy Used to Treat Cancer”). This will not make the cancer to go

away, but it can make it more manageable and controlled and act more like a chronic disease. If

the cancer is to advance and chemotherapy can no longer try to keep it controlled, then

chemotherapy is used to help relieve some pain. Chemotherapy can also be given to a patient

while they are receiving another form of treatment as well, “Sometimes chemo is the only

treatment you need. More often, chemo is used with surgery or radiation therapy or both. And it's

sometimes used with other drugs, such as targeted therapy, hormone therapy, or

immunotherapy”(American Cancer Society, “How Is Chemotherapy Used to Treat Cancer”). For

example, a patient may have just had surgery to get rid of the cancer in a body part. After the

surgery the patient will receive some chemotherapy to make sure that any of the cancer cells that

were missed in the surgery are killed.

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An alternative treatment that is common as well is radiation therapy. Just like

chemotherapy, radiation therapy is commonly used with other types of treatments at the same

time. Radiation therapy kills cancer cells by using waves or particles that have high energy. The

radiation is used to keep the cancer cells from dividing like they normally would, “Radiation

works by making small breaks in the DNA inside cells. These breaks keep cancer cells from

growing and dividing and cause them to die” (American Cancer Society, “How Radiation

Therapy Is Used to Treat Cancer”). There are times that the radiation used can cause an effect on

the normal cells nearby, but usually they will make a recover and function like normal. Radiation

therapy is a type of treatment that is considered local. Meaning that it is used to treat cancer in a

certain part of the body instead of the whole body like chemotherapy would. Since radiation

therapy is a local treatment it is usually not used to treat a patient that’s cancer has spread to

different places of the body. Radiation therapy is generally given to patients that have lower

stages of cancer, which means that their cancer has not spread or has spread very little. There are

many types are cancers that are very sensitive to radiation therapy so many people prefer this

method of treatment, “For certain cancers that can be cured either by radiation or by surgery,

radiation may be the preferred treatment. This is because radiation can cause less damage and the

part of the body involved may be more likely to work the way it should after treatment”

(American Cancer Society, “How Radiation Therapy Is Used to Treat Cancer”). Radiation

therapy can also be used to help prevent the cancer spreading to another place. Doctors may give

radiation therapy to areas that is common for the cancer to spread to, “For instance, people with

certain kinds of lung cancer may get radiation to the head, even when there is no cancer known

to be there, because their type of lung cancer often spreads to the brain. This is done to help
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prevent cancer from spreading to the head even before it can” (American Cancer Society, “How

Radiation Therapy Is Used to Treat Cancer”). If the cancer has spread to a point where it can no

longer be cured, then radiation can be used to help relieve some pain. For example, radiation can

be used to make a tumor smaller so that it will cause less pain.

Although surgery, chemotherapy, and radiation therapy are some of the more common

types of treatments there are still many other kinds of treatments that are used. One of them is

targeted therapy. This treatment is usually used alongside other kinds of treatment like

chemotherapy. Targeted therapy will use a specific drug that will attack and kill certain kinds of

cancer cells. A second kind of treatment that is used is called immunotherapy. This form of

treatment will help strengthen the patient’s own immune system so that it can help identify and

kill the cancer cells. Another type of treatment is hormone therapy. Hormone treatment is a

treatment that is called systemic. Meaning that it can travel although the body and help treat

cancer like chemotherapy can. Hormone therapy is used to stop the growth of the cancer cells.

This treatment is mostly used for cancer like breast cancer and prostate cancer, “Hormone

therapy is mostly used to treat certain kinds of breast cancer and prostate cancer that depend on

sex hormones to grow” (American Cancer Society, “Treatment Types”). Although hormone

therapy is generally used for breast and prostate cancer there are a few types of cancer that

respond well to it. Another type of treatment are stem cell and bone marrow transplants. These

transplants are needed because many of the treatments like chemotherapy kill many of people

normal healthy cells alongside the cancer cells. This treatment allows the patients to be healthy

while going through chemotherapy, “So, transplanting the healthy cells lets doctors use much
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higher doses of chemo to try to kill all of the cancer cells, and the transplanted stem cells can

grow into healthy, mature blood cells that work normally and reproduce cells that are free of

cancer” (American Cancer Society, “How Stem Cell and Bone Marrow Transplants Are Used to

Treat Cancer”). Also, some of the donated stem cells can help the immune system by fighting off

cancer cells that the immune system may struggle to kill by itself.

Many of the cancer treatments that are used are very harsh to the body. There are cases

where they can cause negative side effects within the body. Many of the cancer treatments are

used to kill the cancer cells that are in the body. There are times that when the treatment is killing

the cancer cells it also damages or kills the cells nearby that are normal and healthy. When to

many normal cells get killed it will cause the body to have side effects. One of the more common

side effects that cancer patients experience is neutropenia. Neutropenia is where a large amount

of white blood cells in the body are killed or damaged. This side effect usually occurs in patients

that have just gotten chemotherapy, “Chemotherapy drugs work by killing fast-growing cells in

the body—cancer cells and healthy white blood cells. During chemotherapy, you may have

fewer than normal white blood cells to fight germs, so you’re more likely to get an infection”

(Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, “Side Effects of Cancer Treatments”). It is

recommended that patients who experience this side effect wash their hands very often to

decrease the risk of infection. Another side effect that is common while receiving chemotherapy

is having alopecia. Alopecia is a condition where a person’s hair falls out. Some cancer patients

use a cooling cap while receiving chemotherapy, “A cooling cap may help you keep more of

your hair. A cooling cap fits tightly on your head and keeps your scalp cold before, during, and
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after your chemotherapy treatment” (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, “Side Effects

of Cancer Treatments”). The cooling cap can work very well with some forms of chemotherapy

and not well with other forms. Usually the hair will grow back a few months after receiving

chemotherapy. Patients that are receiving chemotherapy may be at risk to experience deep vein

thrombosis, “Deep vein thrombosis (DVT) is when a blood clot forms in a deep vein. These clots

usually form in the lower leg, thigh, or pelvis, but they can also occur in the arm. Sometimes the

DVT will break off and go to the lungs” (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, “Side

Effects of Cancer Treatments”). There are some treatments that can damage the lymph nodes or

need them to be removed. This may cause a side effect called lymphedema, which is where the

lymph node fluid is not drained correctly. This can cause parts of the body to swell from buildup

of the fluid. A side effect that is very common in most cancer treatment is feeling nausea and

vomiting.

Although cancer is mainly genetic disorder, there are some ways that can help prevent

cancer. One of the best ways to help prevent cancer is to make good healthy habits and choices.

Eat a healthy balance diet and stay a healthy weight. It is also good to get rid of bad habits that

can lead to cancer like smoking, drinking excessive amounts of alcohol, and not wearing any sun

protection while being out in the harsh sun. Another good way to help prevent cancer is keeping

up with routine vaccinations, “Vaccines (shots) also help lower cancer risk. The human

papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine helps prevent most cervical cancers and several other kinds of

cancer. The hepatitis B vaccine can help lower liver cancer risk” (Centers for Disease Control
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and Prevention, “How to Prevent Cancer or Find It Early”). Another good habit to have is to get

regular screening tests. These can be used to find cancer early so that it is easiest to treat.

Cancer has affected many people all throughout the world. Yet many people do not know

much about this disease. Some may have questions about cancer like what this disease even is.

Cancer are abnormal cells that have divided and will not stop dividing. This dividing can cause

effects within the body like growing tumors. Cancer is treated with many different kinds of

treatments that can cause side effect to occur.

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Works Cited

American Cancer Society. “How Is Chemotherapy Used to Threat Cancer.” American Cancer Society,

22 November 2019. https://www.cancer.org/treatment/treatments-and-side-effects/treatment-

types/chemotherapy/how-is-chemotherapy-used-to-treat-cancer.html. Accessed 6 April 2020.

American Cancer Society. “How Radiation Therapy Is Used to Treat Cancer.” American Cancer

Society, 27 December 2019. https://www.cancer.org/treatment/treatments-and-side-

effects/treatment-types/radiation/basics.html. Accessed 6 April 2020.

American Cancer Society. “How Stem Cell and Bone Marrow Transplants Are Used to Treat Cancer.”

American Cancer Society, 20 March 2020. https://www.cancer.org/treatment/treatments-and-

side-effects/treatment-types/stem-cell-transplant/why-stem-cell-transplants-are-used.html.

Accessed 6 April 2020

American Cancer Society. “How Surgery Is Used for Cancer.” American Cancer Society, 2 October

2019. https://www.cancer.org/treatment/treatments-and-side-effects/treatment-

types/surgery/how-surgery-is-used-for-cancer.html. Accessed 6 April 2020.

American Cancer Society. “Treatment Types.” American Cancer Society.

https://www.cancer.org/treatment/treatments-and-side-effects/treatment-types.html.

Accessed 6 April 2020.

American Cancer Society. “What Is Cancer.” American Cancer Society, 8 December 2015.

https://www.cancer.org/cancer/cancer-basics/what-is-cancer.html. Accessed 6 April 2020.

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Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. “How to Prevent Cancer or Find It Early.” Centers

for Disease Control and Prevention, 9 July 2019.

https://www.cdc.gov/cancer/dcpc/prevention/index.htm. Accessed 6 April 2020

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. “Side Effects of Cancer Treatment.” Centers for

Disease Control and Prevention, 5 February 2019.

https://www.cdc.gov/cancer/survivors/patients/side-effects-of-treatment.htm. Accessed 6

April 2020.

National Cancer Institute. “What Is Cancer.” National Cancer Institute, 9 February 2015.

https://www.cancer.gov/about-cancer/understanding/what-is-cancer. Accessed 6 April

2020.

National Cancer Institute. “What is the Tumor Microenvironment.” National Cancer Institute, 15

January 2020. https://visualsonline.cancer.gov/details.cfm?imageid=12496. Accessed 6

April 2020.