Cancer An Uncontrollable Division Of Cells - 1467 Words

INTRODUCTION TO CANCER What is Cancer? Cancer is described as an uncontrollable division of cells. According to the National Cancer Institute, cancer is one of the leading causes of death in the world, with an estimated 595,690 deaths and 1,685,210 new cases in 2016 alone (NIH 2015). Cancer can develop from almost every organ of the body, with the most common organs affected being the breasts, lungs, prostate, colon, and bladder (NIH 2015). As the disease progresses, it may become metastatic, where the cancer cells migrate from their point of origin to other parts of the body. Cancer can spread in three ways: through tissue, through the lymph system, and through the blood (NIH 2015). When cancer progresses to a metastatic state, it is†¦show more content†¦While the overall cancer death rate has declined, the war continues today as we are still plagued with the complicated disease, cancer. Hallmarks of Cancer (Hanahan and Weinberg 2011) During tumor development and progression, cells develop/acquire six hallmark capabilities as they transform from normal cells to neoplastic tumor cells. These hallmarks are developed at various times throughout cancer cell progression are thought to promote the growth and metastasis of tumors. These hallmark qualities, as outlined by Hanahan and Weinberg, are thought to be fostered by underlying genomic instability, referring to mutations in the genome, and inflammation, usually brought on by the immune system. The six hallmark capabilities include: sustaining proliferative signaling, evading growth suppressors, resisting cell death, enabling replicative immortality, inducing angiogenesis, and activating invasion and metastasis. 1. Proliferative Signaling Cell growth and division is controlled by the production and release of growth promoting signals. While normal cells carefully regulate the release of these signals, these signals are deregulated in cancerous cells. Cancer cells are believed upregulate the cell cycle and cell growth through growth factors which bind to cell-surface receptors and release signals. Other mechanisms for sustaining proliferative signaling in cancer cells include: autocrine stimulation, where the cancer cells emit growth factors and then respond to those sameShow MoreRelatedCancer and Cell Cycle Project1122 Words   |  5 PagesCancer and Cell Cycle Project Section A Option 1 The normal process of cell division is altered in cancerous cells typically by mutations in the genes involved in the regulation of cellular division. The number of mutations normally will begin to spread because when the genes that make DNA repairing proteins become mutated, this causes the DNA that they would be repairing to become mutated as well. 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