What exactly is cancer?
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convenient primary care without ever leaving their homes.
Elena A. Kuzin-Palmeri
Nurse Practitioner for over 30 years
Elena brings a wealth of expertise in the following:
With over 20 years of proven home care experience, she loves
serving the Brooklyn community, and has a passion for working
with the elderly, finding it both challenging and exciting.
For More Information Call (718) 289-2606
COURIER LIFE, SEPT. 11-17, 2020 21
OUR SERVICES
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(718) 289-2606 | www.parkerinstitute.org
Men’s Health
Cancer can affect anyone. Sometimes
it strikes with no warning,
while other times people
may have a genetic predisposition.
Various medical organizations say
there are between 100 and 200 different
types of cancer. Everyone
has heard of cancer, but some are
still unsure of what cancer is.
Defi ning cancer
The organization Cancer Research
UK defi nes cancer as abnormal cell
growth. Cancer cells are cells that divide
in an uncontrolled way. New human
cells normally grow and divide
to form new cells as the body requires
them. As healthy cells grow old or become
damaged, they die off and new
cells take their place. However, when
cancer develops, this process goes
haywire. Damaged cells become even
more abnormal and can survive when
they would normally die. These cells
keep multiplying and eventually can
form lumps or masses of tissue called
tumors. This is the case in most cancers,
with the exception of leukemia,
wherein cancer prohibits normal
blood function due to abnormal cell
division in the bloodstream.
Not all lumps in the body are tumors.
Lumps that remain in place
and do not spread to other areas of the
body can be harmless or benign. According
to the American Cancer Society,
cancerous tumors are malignant,
which means they can spread into, or
invade, nearby tissues. Cancer stages
actually are determined based by how
far cancerous cells have spread beyond
their point of origin.
Cancer stages
Cancer is staged according to
particular criteria based on each
individual type of cancer. Generally
speaking, lower stages of cancer,
such as stage 1 or 2, refer to
cancers that have not spread very
far. Higher stages of cancer, such
as 3, mean cancer has branched out
more. Stage 4 refers to cancer that
has spread considerably.
Common forms of cancer
Cancer can occur just about anywhere
in the body. Cancers of the
breast, lung, colon, and prostate
cancers affect males and females in
high numbers.
Classifying cancer involves understanding
where the cancer originated.
Cancer Treatment Centers
of America offers these classifications:
• Carcinomas begin in the skin
or tissues that line the internal organs.
• Sarcomas develop in the bone,
cartilage, fat, muscle or other connective
tissues.
• Leukemia begins in the blood
and bone marrow.
• Lymphomas start in the immune
system.
• Central nervous system cancers
develop in the brain and spinal
cord.
Cancer is treated in various
ways and depends on the cancer’s
stage, type and effects on the body.
A person’s age as well as his or her
current health status also may play
a role in treatment decisions made
by both the patient and his or her
medical team. Surgery may be conducted
to remove a tumor, while
chemotherapy employs chemicals
to kill cancerous cells. Radiation
therapy, which uses X-rays to direct
radiation toward cancerous cells, is
another potential cancer treatment.
The side effects of each treatment
vary, and there are ways to mitigate
these effects.
Why does cancer occur?
Cancer develops for various reasons
— some of which may not be
fully understood. The National Cancer
Institute states genetic changes
that cause cancer can be inherited
from a person’s parents. Cancers
can also arise during a person’s
lifetime as a result of errors that
occur as cells divide or because of
damage to DNA that results from
certain environmental exposures.
Cancer-causing substances include
the chemicals in tobacco smoke.
Ultraviolet rays from the sun also
have been linked to cancer.
Learning more about cancer can
help people reduce their risk for developing
this potentially deadly disease.
Individuals should always speak
with their physicians if they have
specific questions about cancer.
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