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Tag: cancer facts

  • Lung cancer.

    Story.
    Source: Cancer Research/NHS
    Lung cancer is the most commonly diagnosed cancer in the world. In the UK, it is the second most-frequently occurring cancer, accounting for one in seven new cases.
    Nine in ten of these can be squarely blamed on the pernicious effects of tobacco smoking – and unfortunately the majority of cases cannot be cured.
    The risk of lung cancer increases with age. It is less common in people under 40.
    Recently, there has been a decrease in the incidence in men, but lung cancer is now rising in women in many countries – this is directly related to changing smoking habits.

    Professor Gordon McVie, from Cancer Research UK, is an expert in lung cancer, and says that despite the current poor survival rates, optimism is higher than ever among researchers.
    He said: “I’ve have been working to research lung cancer treatment for the last 30 years, and there has never been a more optimistic time.
    “We haven’t made a big impact on cure rates yet, but I do believe that that is simply a question of time.”
    He said that women in Scotland and the north of England were now more likely to die of lung cancer than breast cancer.
    SYMPTOMS
    The key symptom of lung cancer is a persistent cough that gradually gets worse.
    Other symptoms include:
    shortness of breath
    drop in ability to exercise
    persistent chest pain
    persistent cough or coughing up blood
    loss of appetite, weight loss and general fatigue
    At present there is no effective screening test for lung cancer.
    If you are worried that you have lung cancer, your doctor may order a chest x-ray, which allows doctors to look out for shadowy areas on the lungs.
    Sometimes a more detailed series of x-rays, called a CT scan, is ordered.
    In many cases, this will be followed by a bronchoscopy or mediastinoscopy to examine tissue, and possibly collect samples for analysis.
    A bronchoscopy involves putting a thin flexible telescope, often with a grabbing device attached down the airways of your lungs.
    In contrast, a in mediastinoscopy a small cut is made in the neck just above the breastbone or on the left side of the chest next to the breastbone.
    Then a thin scope (mediastinoscope) is inserted through the opening.
    CAUSES
    Most lung cancer cases are caused by smoking cigarettes.
    Even passive smoking can cause a problem, and the longer period over which the patient smokes, the higher the risks.
    Breathing in other carcinogens in the workplace, for example asbestos, can also trigger cancer.
    Some people seem to be genetically pre-disposed to developing lung cancer, and medical checks in smokers may in future look for these key genes to work out how likely lung cancer is.
    TREATMENTS
    Treatment depends on the type of lung cancer and the state or extent of the disease.
    There are two types of lung cancer, non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and small cell lung cancer (SCLC). The names simply describe the type of cell found in the tumours.
    In NSCLC, the tumour is often located in the outside part of the lung, away from the centre, and if it has not spread, it may be possible to remove it by surgery.
    However, overall less than a fifth of all NSCLC patients are suitable for surgery.
    Chemotherapy and radiotherapy will also be considered in many cases.
    Unfortunately, NSCLC is hard to cure, and in many cases, the treatment given will be to prolong life as far as possible – and relieve symptoms.
    SCLC is different from NSCLC. In particular, it has a tendency to spread to distant parts of the body at a relatively early stage.
    As a result, small-cell lung cancers are generally less likely to be cured by surgery.
    Chemotherapy and radiotherapy are used as well.
    http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/3243673.stm

  • Leukaemias and lymphomas

    Very useful.
    Source: Cancer Research/NHS
    Leukaemias and lymphomas are cancers which affect the cells which are part of the fluids circulating around the body.
    Leukaemias affect certain blood cells, particularly the white cells, or “leukocytes” which help fight off infections and disease.
    And lymphomas are cancers of the lymphatic system, a network of vessels which form part of the body’s immune system, and carry other infection-fighting cells called “lymphocytes”, as well as draining dead cells away from the tissues.
    There are several different types of leukaemia, classed mainly according to the way the cancer develops, and the variety of white blood cells they affect.
    There are two principal kinds of lymphoma – Hodgkin’s and non-Hodgkin’s – the latter is more common, and also slightly harder to treat.
    Professor Peter Johnson, an expert in lymphomas from the University of Southampton, who carries out work for Cancer Research UK is hopeful that new chemotherapy and radiotherapy techniques will help improve survival rates in lymphoma.
    He said: “The sorts of treatment we are investigating in the future centre around how we can stir the body’s immune system into recognising that the lymphoma is there.
    “This we think is a very promising form of new treatment.”
    SYMPTOMS
    There are different symptoms for leukaemias and lymphomas
    Symptoms of leukaemias include:
    Anaemia – patient unusually pale, weak and tired
    Frequent infections, fevers, chills, or flu-like symptoms
    Easy bruising or bleeding
    Night sweats
    Bone or joint pain
    Weight loss
    Swollen lymph nodes, tender to the touch
    Leukaemia cells can also affect the testicles, causing swelling, or affect the spinal column and cause headaches, seizures and vomiting.
    The different types of leukaemia develop in different ways. Acute leukaemias progress rapidly, whereas in chronic leukaemia, symptoms take longer to develop and the decline is far less swift.
    Some of the symptoms of lymphomas can be very similar to those of leukaemia.
    The main difference is a painless rather than tender swelling of the lymph nodes, particularly in the neck, under the arms or around the groin.
    Hodgkin’s and non-Hodgkin’s patients also often suffer night sweats, unexplained fevers, fatigue and weight loss. There can also be itchy skin or red patches.

    The first thing a doctor will do to investigate suspicions of leukaemia or lymphoma is carry out a physical examination.
    The lymph nodes in the neck, under the arms and in the groin will be “palpated”, or felt. It can be slightly uncomfortable, but not painful.
    A doctor can also feel for unusual swellings in the liver, which can happen if lymphoma spreads to that organ.
    Blood tests, known as “full blood counts” will also give a strong clue as to both the presence of disease – and what type it is.
    The numbers of various types of cell, mature and immature, are physically counted to make sure there are the right number.
    Another key test is the x-ray or CT scan, which can look for swellings in the lymph nodes, liver, lungs and spleen.
    In the case of leukaemia, this may take the form of taking a sample of bone marrow, normally from the hip with a needle. Sometimes a sample of bone is taken for analysis.

    If this confirms the presence of leukaemia cells, a lumbar puncture, which involves inserting a needle through the back into the lower spine takes more fluid for analysis.
    For lymphoma, a biopsy of lymph nodes, normally from the neck and underarm area is taken to check for disease.
    All this information will help doctors work out how aggressive the cancer is, and how far it has already spread.
    CAUSES
    The causes of lymphoma and leukaemia have not yet been established.
    However, in Hodgkin’s lymphoma, there appears to be a connection with a virus called the Epstein-Barr virus.
    This is the virus which causes glandular fever, and Hodgkin’s is often found in people in their 20s.
    However, the incidence of glandular fever is high among this age group – and the number of Hodgkin’s cases is very low.
    TREATMENTS
    Doctors try to tailor treatments for both lymphomas and leukaemias to fit the variety of disease found.
    Although many patients will be given chemotherapy, different combinations of drugs are often used.
    The aim is to get the cancer into “remission”, which means no evidence of cancer can be found on scans or blood tests.
    Often, leukaemia patients are given short, intensive courses of chemotherapy through a tube left linked into a main blood vein in the chest.
    Sometimes, drugs are injected through a tube directly into the spinal column or brain to reach the cells there.
    This may require the patient to stay in hospital for the duration of treatment.
    Lymphoma patients are also often given chemotherapy.
    This can be a combination of eight different drugs.
    However, if the cancer does not appear to have spread far, then radiotherapy may be an option.
    Both leukaemia and lymphoma patients sometimes need to have bone marrow transplants, particularly if the first chemotherapy treatment fails and more powerful drugs have to be used.
    The bone marrow is found at the centre of the body’s larger bones, such as in the spine and upper leg, producing blood cells and helping the body fight infection.
    If high-dose chemotherapy is to be used, this may permanently damage the bone marrow, so it has to be replaced afterwards.
    The patient can be given drugs to stimulate the production of cells vital to rebuilding the bone marrow, which are then harvested and replaced after the treatment.
    Or a donor may have to be found whose bone marrow is an exact match for the patient.
    A close relative may be able to provide a match, but this is far from certain.
    The Anthony Nolan Bone Marrow Trust keeps a register of 130,000 volunteers who are all prepared to give bone marrow if they prove a match for a patient.
    This increases the chances of an unrelated match being found.
    http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/3244503.stm

    <img src="null” alt=”Leukaemias and lymphomas” />

  • Cancer, The Facts

    Facts worth knowing.
    Story:
    One in three of us will be diagnosed with cancer during our life.

    The disease tends to affect older people – but can strike at any time.

    Excluding certain skin cancers, there were almost 290,000 new cases of the disease in 2005.

    Some cancer, such as breast, are becoming more common, while new cases of lung cancer are expected to fall away due to the drop in the number of smokers.

    However, while the overall number of new cancers is not falling, the good news is that successful treatment rates for many of the most common types are improving rapidly.

    Latest Study:

    Latest Figures indicate that the incidence of Cancer is declining marginally.

    However, the incidence of Cancer is also rising.

    The overall trends in declining cancer death rates continue. However, increases in incidence rates for some HPV-associated cancers and low vaccination coverage among adolescents underscore the need for additional prevention efforts for HPV-associated cancers, including efforts to increase vaccination coverage.

    The initial report documented the first steady decline in cancer death rates, beginning in the early 1990s, since national record keeping on vital statistics began in 1930 (1). In addition to providing updates on incidence and mortality patterns, each report features a topic of special interest (2–14). This report features the burden and trends in human papillomavirus (HPV)–associated cancers among persons aged 15 years or older and HPV vaccination coverage levels among adolescents aged 13 to 17 years.

    Exposure to HPV is common through sexual contact, and most infections resolve over time. However, persistent infection with oncogenic HPV types is etiologically linked to cervical cancer (15), as well as cancers of the oropharynx (16), anus (17), vagina and vulva (18), and penis (19,20). Virtually all cervical cancers are due to HPV infection, along with 90% of anal cancers, more than 60% of certain subsites of oropharyngeal cancers, and 40% of vagina, vulva, and penile cancers (20). Although there are approximately a dozen oncogenic HPV types, HPV 16 and 18 are the most common HPV types and are found in approximately 70% of cervical cancers. Human papillomavirus 16 is found in approximately 90% of the noncervical cancers often associated with HPV infection (20). Human papillomavirus types 6 and 11 are associated with the development of 90% of anogenital warts (21). Two vaccines (bivalent and quadrivalent) are available to protect against HPV types 16 and 18. Data from clinical trials have shown that both vaccines prevent vaccine type–related cervical precancers (22,23); the quadrivalent vaccine has been shown to also prevent vaginal, vulvar, and anal precancers (24,25). Although data show the vaccines prevent various outcomes, no data are available on the efficacy for prevention of HPV-associated cancers or lesions of the oropharynx. Because HPV 16 is responsible for the majority of HPV-associated cancers (20), the vaccines likely protect against these outcomes. The quadrivalent vaccine also protects against HPV 6 and 11, and clinical trials show the vaccine prevents vaccine type–related genital warts (26). The Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) recommends routine vaccination of girls aged 11 or 12 years with three doses of either vaccine and routine vaccination of boys aged 11 or 12 years with three doses of quadrivalent vaccine (27–29). Vaccination is also recommended for women aged 13 through 26 years and men aged 13 through 21 years who were not vaccinated previously. Men aged 22 through 26 years may also receive the vaccine. The goals of the current vaccination recommendations for adolescents are to prevent persistent HPV infections and the occurrence of anogenital warts beginning in young adulthood and cervical, vaginal, vulvar, and anal cancers that occur later in life. The occurrence of cervical cancer can also be prevented through screening (eg, Papanicolaou [Pap] and HPV testing) (30–32), and Pap testing has contributed to the substantial declines in cervical cancer rates in the United States and other developed countries over the past several decades (33).

    For detailed report Link below.

    http://jnci.oxfordjournals.org/content/early/2013/01/03/jnci.djs491.full?sid=ccafd244-6199-4658-b24d-f139a96187c5

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