Cancer describes a condition in which cells grow in an irregular fashion. There are many types of cancer including, but not limited to,
lung, liver, bladder, kidney, skin, melanoma,
mesothelioma,
leukemia, nasal sinus, esophagus, throat, mouth, prostate,
colon, rectal,
cervical, uterine, ovarian,
breast,
testicular, pancreatic, Hodgkin's and non-Hodgkin's disease. As you can see, cancer can occur just about anywhere in the body.
A normal and healthy cell can exhibit abnormal growth characteristics when a carcinogen (cancer inducing agent such as a
pesticide,
tobacco, sunlight, etc.) alters the cell's genetic material. This preliminary stage of cancer development is known as "initiation." The next phase is called promotion as the initiated cell (and therefore vulnerable cell) is "promoted" to a cancerous cell. Just because a cell has been promoted to a cancerous cell does not necessarily mean that the patient "has cancer." Often, the body's
immune system is able to attack the cancerous cell and destroy it before it causes any damage. Unfortunately, people with poor or compromised immune systems may be unable to destroy these emerging cancer cells, thereby allowing the cell to continue growing until the person indeed "has cancer." The cancerous cells may multiply and cause a tumor. Cancer has "metastasized" if the cancerous cells have expanded beyond the tumor itself and spread into other parts of the body.
Treatment options vary depending on the type, location, and stage of the cancer's development. Common techniques include surgery to remove affected areas,
chemotherapy and
radiation. Some cancers respond extremely well to treatment, others may be incurable. Many substances (carcinogens), both natural and synthetic, have been shown to encourage the growth of cancerous cells.
If you believe you may have been exposed to a carcinogen it may be advisable to seek medical and legal assistance to protect your health and your legal rights. View sub-topics at right to learn more about some specific types of cancer and some of their common causes.
See Also
- Breast Cancer
- Cervical Cancer
- Esophageal Cancer
- Glioblastoma: Overview
- Leukemia: Overview
- Lung Cancer: Overview
- Lymphoma
- Melanoma
- Neuroblastoma: Overview
- Paget's Disease: Overview
- Testicular Cancer: Overview
- Vaginal Cancer
- 1,1,2,2-Tetrachloroethane
- 2,3-Benzofuran
- 2,4,6-Trinitrotoluene
- 4,4'-Methylenedianiline
- Acrolein Exposure: Overview
- Acrylonitrile
- Agent Orange
- Product Liability - Food & Restaurant - Alcoholic Beverages Overview
- Aller Relief Chinese Herbal Remedy: Overview
- Aller Relief Chinese Herbal Remedy: Overview
- Americium
- Aniline
- Aristolochic acid: Overview
- Arsenic
- Arsine Exposure: Overview
- Atrazine
- Bellvue, Colorado
- Benzidine
- Bepridil: Overview
- Bis(chloromethyl) Ether
- Black Cohosh
- Breast Cancer - Diagnosis Errors
- Breast Implants
- Bromodichloromethane
- Bromoform and Chlorodibromomethane
- Buckeye Pulp Mill: Overview
- Cadmium
- Carbon Tetrachloride
- Carrageenan: Overview
- Chaca Chaca Candy Bars
- Chromium IV Exposure: Overview
- Ciba-Geigy Corporation - McIntosh, Alabama
- Clair-Mel City Central Service Yard: Overview
- Clarendon, Vermont
- Coal Ash Exposure: Overview
- Coal Tar: Overview
- Colfax Treating Co. & Durawood - Pineville, Louisiana & Alexandria, Louisiana
- Colon Cancer - Diagnosis Errors
- Comfrey
- Coronet Industries - Plant City, Florida
- CT Scan: Overview
- DDT Exposure: Overview
- Dental Sealants: Overview
- Desloge, Missouri
- Dickson County, Tennessee
- Diesel Exhaust
- Dioxin
- Dover Township, New Jersey
- East Broad Street Elementary School - Savannah, Georgia
- Ephedra Recall
- Escambia & Santa Rosa Counties - Florida: Overview
- Estrogen
- Fairfield, Maine: Overview
- Fiber Glass
- Florida Tobacco Lawsuits
- Florida Toxic Algae: Overview
- Formaldehyde Exposure: Overview
- Frito-Lay Contamination: Overview
- Fritz Mine - Fairfield, North Dakota
- Fruit Avenue Plume Site - Albuquerque, New Mexico
- Furan
- Gas & Oil Pipeline Accidents
- GE Capacitators - Queensbury, New York: Overview
- Geneva Steel - Vineyard, Utah
- Georgetown, Texas
- GKN Westland Aerospace Incorporated - Tallassee, Alabama
- Grant Street Well - Talladega, Alabama
- Hall Street Plant - Beaverton, Oregon
- Hexachlorobenzene
- Hexachlorobutadiene
- Hexachlorocyclohexanes
- Hexachloroethane
- High Tension Wires: Overview
- Hills, Iowa
- Hinkley, California: Overview
- Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT)
- Hydrazines
- Ionizing Radiation
- Irradiation: Overview
- Kerosene (Fuel Oils)
- Landia Chemical Company: Overview
- Lead & Lead-Based Paint
- Lewisite (Blister Agent)
- Lexington Manor Lead Site - Hamilton, Ohio
- Lindberg Hevi-Duty Electric - Watertown, Wisconsin
- Lipari Landfill: Overview
- Los Alamos National Laboratory - New Mexico
- Lynn Lake, Manitoba: Overview
- Mammogram Errors
- Mason Valley - Nevada
- Massena GM Plant: Overview
- Methylene Chloride
- Mexican Candy
- Midland, Michigan - Tittabawassee River
- Midnite Mine - Wellpinit, Washington
- Migrant Workers: Overview
- Mosquito Coils
- Mount Dioxin - Pensacola
- MTBE
- Mustard Gas
- Natick Laboratory - Natick, Massachusetts
- Nickel
- Nitrobenzene
- Nitrogen Mustards (HN-1, HN-2, HN-3) (Blister Agent)
- n-Nitrosodimethylamine
- n-Nitrosodi-n-propylamine
- n-Nitrosodiphenylamine
- Nolvadex / Tamoxifen Citrate: Overview
- Nuclear Contamination Exposure: Overview
- Onondaga County - New York
- Organophosphate
- PCBs
- Pentachlorophenol
- Perchlorate
- Perchloroethylene
- Phthalates Exposure: Overview
- Pittard Road - Athens, Georgia
- Plastic Surgery: Overview
- Plutonium
- Poles, Incorporated - Oldtown, Idaho
- Polybrominated Diphenyl Ethers (PBDEs)
- Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons / PAH
- Polyvinyl Chloride (PVC)
- Prairie Grove, Arkansas
- Pratt & Whitney - North Haven: Overview
- Premarin
- Prempro / Premphase
- Radiation Therapy: Overview
- Radioactive Iodine (RAI): Overview
- Radium
- Radon
- Railroad Workers & The Federal Employers' Liability Act (FELA)
- Rialto, California
- Royal Demolition eXplosive - RDX
- Rutland Town Elementary School: Overview
- Saccharin: Overview
- School Buses & Commercial Lines
- Semicarbazide (SEM)
- Semiconductor Industry
- Skyway Trap and Skeet Club - St. Petersburg, Florida: Overview
- Spring Valley: Overview
- Stauffer Chemical: Overview
- Strontium
- Styrene
- Sulfur Mustards H/HD and HT (Blister Agent)
- Suter Elementary & Cook Elementary - Pensacola, Florida
- Sydney Tar Ponds: Overview
- Synthetic Vitreous Fibers
- Tanning Beds
- Taxol / Paclitaxel
- Teflon
- Thorium
- Tobacco Field Workers: Overview
- Total Petroleum Hydrocarbons (TPH)
- Toxaphene
- Toxic Mothballs: Overview
- Trichloroethylene
- Union City Cemetery - Indiana: Overview
- Vending Machine Metal Toy Jewelry Recall
- Vieques Island, Puerto Rico: Overview
- Vinyl Chloride
- Vitamin C: Overview
- Weapons Workers: Overview
- Welding Rods
- Wingate Landfill - Fort Lauderdale
- Wireless Phones
- Cancer: Frequently Asked Questions