Cancer

Introduction: Cancer

Cancer is caused by an abnormal overgrowth of cells with more than 100 cancer subtypes depending on which cell grows. In many cancers, the cells clump together to form solid tumors, but in some the cells are dispersed around the blood stream (leukemia) or the lymphatic system (lymphoma).

Prognosis of cancer has improved greatly in modern times owing to treatment advances and early detection programs. However, although survival rates have improved, cancer still remains the 2nd top cause of death, second only to heart disese in the USA.

Misdiagnosis of cancer is naturally possible but not common if professional medical advice is sought, because physicians will usually perform comprehensive diagnostic testing if cancer is a possibility. Diagnostic tests have also improved in accuracy including newer tumor marker blood tests. Self-diagnosis of cancer is usually incorrect and quite common is for people to fear that they have cancer based on a symptom (e.g. weight loss, persistent cough, lumps, or frequent urination), only to find out they have other less severe conditions. On the other hand, sadly common is for people to have cancer but be unaware of it, because many types have a slow insidious onset without early symptoms. For this reason, regular screening for particular types of cancer is valuable in preventing severe cancer cases.

Symptoms of Cancer

• Cancer symptoms depend on the type of cancer but may include:
  • Abscess
  • Bowel symptoms
  • Bladder symptoms
  • Poorly healing skin sore

See full list of 18 symptoms of Cancer

Home Diagnostic Testing

Home medical testing related to Cancer:

• Colon & Rectal Cancer: Home Testing
  • Home Colorectal Cancer Tests
  • Home Fecal Occult Bleeding Tests

Medical Textbooks Online about Cancer

Book excerpts: Copyright © 2008 Lippincott Williams & Wilkins. All rights reserved.

Diagnostic Tests for Cancer

• Tests depend on the specific type of cancer but some types of tests are common
• Physical exam
• Imaging - used to see the tumor or its related damage.
  • CT
  • MRI

See full list of 13 diagnostic tests for Cancer

Wrongly Diagnosed with Cancer?

• Misdiagnosis of Cancer
• Failure to diagnose Cancer
• Underlying causes of Cancer (possibly wrongly diagnosed)
• Failure to diagnose Cancer

Misdiagnosis and Cancer

Spitz nevi misdiagnosed as dangerous melanoma skin cancer: One possible misdiagnosis to consider in lieu of melanoma is spitz nevi. See melanoma and spitz nevi....read more »

Read more about Misdiagnosis and Cancer

Causes of Cancer

Read more about causes of Cancer.

More information about causes of Cancer:

• Cancer as a complication caused by other conditions
• Cancer as a symptom
• Medical news summaries relating to Causes of Cancer
• Cause statistics for Cancer

Treatments for Cancer

• Treatments depend on the specific type of cancer but some types of treatments are common
• Chemotherapy
• Radiation therapy
• Surgery
• Biological therapy (immunotherapy)

See full list of 9 treatments for Cancer

Videos for Cancer

Patient Surveys for Cancer

• Patient Profile Survey
  Take Survey  View Results
• Survey about the symptoms of your Cancer
  Take Survey  View Results

Prognosis for Cancer

More about prognosis of Cancer

Reseach about Cancer

Visit our research pages for current research about Cancer treatments.

Clinical Trials for Cancer

The US based website ClinicalTrials.gov lists information on both federally and privately supported clinical trials using human volunteers.

Some of the clinical trials listed on ClinicalTrials.gov for Cancer include:

• Glutamine in Preventing Acute Diarrhea in Patients With Pelvic Cancer - This study is no longer recruiting patients (Current: 23 Nov 2006) - glutamine
• Standard Therapy With or Without Dalteparin in Treating Patients With Advanced Breast, Lung, Colorectal, or Prostate Cancer - This study is no longer recruiting patients (Current: 23 Nov 2006) - dalteparin
• Gene Therapy in Treating Patients With Cancer - This study is no longer recruiting patients (Current: 23 Nov 2006)
• Biological Therapy in Treating Patients With Metastatic Cancer - This study is no longer recruiting patients (Current: 23 Nov 2006) - carcinoembryonic antigen RNA-pulsed DC cancer vaccine
• Vaccine Therapy in Treating Patients With Advanced or Recurrent Cancer - This study is no longer recruiting patients (Current: 23 Nov 2006) - human papillomavirus 16 E6 peptide,human papillomavirus 16 E7 peptide

See full list of 14237 Clinical Trials for Cancer

Prevention of Cancer

Prevention information for Cancer has been compiled from various data sources and may be inaccurate or incomplete. None of these methods guarantee prevention of Cancer.

• Prevention depends on the specific type of cancer but some methods are common
• Avoid sunlight exposure - to prevent skin cancer and melanoma.
• Eat a healthy diet
• Regular checkups at the doctor
• Regular screening for common cancers - early detection of any abnormality can lead to prevention of severe cancers and easier treatment.

Read more about prevention of Cancer

Statistics for Cancer

• Medical statistics for Cancer
• Prevalence and incidence statistics for Cancer
• Death and Mortality statistics for Cancer
• Society statistics for Cancer

Types of Cancer

• Cancer type by severity:
  • Benign tumor - non-cancerous tumors.
  • Malignant tumor - cancerous tumors.
  • Metastatic cancer - spreading of cancer beyond its initial site to lymph nodes and/or other body areas.
• Cancer type by type of tumor:

See full list of 111 Types of Cancer

Stories from Users Related to Cancer

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• Do I have cancer or am I just paranoid?
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User Interactive Forums

Read about other experiences, ask a question about Cancer, or answer someone else's question, on our message boards:

• I can not get a diagnosis. Please help.
• Tell us your medical story.
• Share your misdiagnosis story.
• What is the best treatment for this?
• See all the forums.

Article Excerpts about Cancer

Cancer is a group of more than 100 different diseases. Cancer occurs when cells become abnormal and keep dividing and forming more cells without order or control. All organs of the body are made up of cells. Normally, cells divide to produce more cells only when the body needs them. If cells divide when new ones are not needed, they form a mass of excess tissue called a tumor. Tumors can be benign (not cancer) or malignant (cancer). The cells in malignant tumors can invade and damage nearby tissues and organs. Cancer cells can also break away from a malignant tumor and travel through the bloodstream or the lymphatic system to form new tumors in other parts of the body. The spread of cancer is called metastasis. (Source: excerpt from Cancer: NWHIC)

Definitions of Cancer:

A tumor composed of atypical neoplastic, often pleomorphic cells that invade other tissues. Malignant neoplasms usually metastasize to distant anatomic sites and may recur after excision. The most common malignant neoplasms are carcinomas (adenocarcinomas or squamous cell carcinomas), Hodgkin's and non-Hodgkin's lymphomas, leukemias, melanomas, and sarcomas. -- 2004 - (Source - Diseases Database)

Any malignant growth or tumor caused by abnormal and uncontrolled cell division; it may spread to other parts of the body through the lymphatic system or the blood stream - (Source - WordNet 2.1)