CANCER: A Quick Note On The Most Silent Killer

Cancer also called malignancy is a group of diseases involving abnormal cell growth with the potential to invade or spread to other parts of the body.
There are more than 100 types of cancer, including breast cancer, skin cancer, lung cancer, colon cancer, prostate cancer, and gastric cancer, cervical cancer. Cancer occurs when the genes of cells are changed either by internal or external factors causing them to act and grow abnormally. Cancers are also called malignant tumors as they have the ability to spread to other neighbouring tissue and organs through blood or lymph system (this is the system which helps fight infection), this kinda spread is called metastasis, hence, a cancer is said to have metastasized when there is development of a secondary growth of cancerous cells away from the primary site that was first identified.

CAUSES OF CANCERS

It is usually not possible to know exactly why one person will develop cancer and another person doesn’t. But certain risk factors may increase a person’s chances of developing cancer.
Typically, cells have to undergo genetic changes before cancer develops. A few factors that can cause cellular genetic mutation include: tobacco, obesity, poor diet, lack of physical activity (exercise), excessive alcohol consumption, prolonged exposure to radiation and environmental pollutants. Cancers can also be caused by infections like Helicobacter pylori, hepatitis B, hepatitis C, human papillomavirus infection, Epstein–Barr virus and HIV. Approximately 5–10% of cancers are due to genetic defects inherited from a person's parents.
Basically the causes of cancer can be mostly classified under:

• Age
• Alcohol
• Cancer-Causing Substances
• Chronic Inflammation
• Diet
• Hormones
• Immunosuppression
• Infectious Agents
• Obesity
• Radiation
• Sunlight
• Tobacco

The list above includes the most studied known or suspected risk factors for cancer. Although some of these risk factors can be avoided, others such as growing older cannot so limiting your exposure to avoidable risk factors may lower your risk of developing certain cancers even at an older age.

TREATMENT

Like every other forms of cancer, early detection cannot be overemphasized, it is very important to detect and begin treatments as soon as possible. Cervical cancer is treatable by the following methods

• Surgery: a form of surgery is hysterectomy which is the entire removal of the uterus, cervix and sometimes part of the vagina. Trachelectomy is another form of surgery which attempts to remove the cancer while preserving the uterus, ovaries and the cervix. The former is done mostly for post-menopausal cases, infertile women, or widely spread and relatively difficult to remove cancers. The latter is done only if a clear margin of cancer tissues is determined and deemed removable.
• Radiation: Cancers that are discovered late, are advanced or have metastasized are treated using radiation therapy. This aims to control spread and kill cancerous cells by damaging their DNA.
• Chemotherapy: this makes use of one or more anti-cancer drugs usually given in a standard chemotherapy regimen. It is given with the intent to cure entirely, prolong life (in cases of terminal cancer) or reduce symptoms. They are best for metastasized and widely spread cancer because they are introduced into the blood stream and can reach any part of the body.

In some cases multiple methods maybe employed.