cancer

Table of Contents

Introduction & Top Questions
Malignant tumors and benign tumors
Tumor nomenclature
- Nomenclature of benign tumors
- Nomenclature of malignant tumors
- Site of origin
Cancer rates and trends
- Statistical records
- Preventable cancers
- Cancer and age
- Death rates
- Variation with region and culture
- Exposure to carcinogens and disease
The growth and spread of cancer
- Tumor progression: the clinical view
  - Presentation
  - Precancerous stage
  - The noninvasive stage
  - Invasion and dissemination
- Metastasis: the cellular view
  - Angiogenesis
  - Microinvasion
  - Dissemination
- Effects of tumors on the individual
  - Local effects of tumor growth
    - Effects of location
    - Effects of functional activity
    - Effects of acute events
  - Systemic effects of malignant tumors
- The immune response to tumors
  - Immune surveillance
  - Tumor antigens
    - Tumor-specific antigens
    - Tumor-associated antigens
Diagnosis and treatment of cancer
- Diagnostic procedures
  - Biopsy
  - Evaluation of tumors
    - Grading and staging
    - Molecular evaluation
- Therapeutic strategies
  - Conventional therapies
    - Surgery
    - Radiation therapy
    - Chemotherapy
    - Bone marrow transplantation
  - Targeted therapies
  - Angiogenesis inhibitors
  - Immunotherapy
  - Gene therapy
- Strategies for cancer prevention
  - Chemoprevention
  - Screening and early detection
Causes of cancer
- The molecular basis of cancer
  - Genetic and epigenetic programs
  - Hallmarks of cancer cells
  - The role of mutation
  - Oncogenes
    - Retroviruses and the discovery of oncogenes
    - Proto-oncogenes and the cell cycle
    - From proto-oncogenes to oncogenes
      Chromosomal translocation
      Gene amplification
      Point mutation
  - Tumor suppressor genes
    - The RB and p53 genes
      Discovery of the first tumor suppressor gene
      Loss of function of the RB protein
      The p53 gene
    - Other tumor suppressor genes
  - DNA repair defects
  - Apoptosis and cancer development
  - Telomeres and the immortal cell
  - Cancer stem cells
- Invasion and metastasis
- Cancer-causing agents
  - Oncogenic viruses
    - DNA viruses
      Human papillomaviruses
      Epstein-Barr virus
      Hepatitis B virus
    - RNA viruses
  - Chemicals, particulate matter, and fibers
    - Initiators
    - Promoters
  - Radiation
    - Ultraviolet radiation
    - Ionizing radiation
- Inherited susceptibility to cancer
  - Familial cancer syndromes
  - Syndromes resulting from inherited defects in DNA repair mechanisms
Milestones in cancer science

References & Edit History Quick Facts & Related Topics

Images & Videos

precancerous growth in a human colon

cancer research

cancer incidence and mortality in the United States

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stereotatic biopsy

For Students

cell culture

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News •

Young Adults See Alarming Spike in 14 Types of Cancer, NIH Report Reveals • May 20, 2025, 4:18 AM ET (SciTechDaily)

Cancer during young adulthood carries long-term mental toll, study finds • May 19, 2025, 10:50 AM ET (Medical Xpress)

Computational framework reveals how cancers rewire driver genes to beat chemotherapy • May 13, 2025, 6:06 AM ET (Medical Xpress)

Vitamin supplements and cancer: New study warns against unsupervised nutritional interventions • May 13, 2025, 3:01 AM ET (Medical Xpress)

Firefighter dies of cancer amid push to change presumptive compensation rules • May 11, 2025, 10:35 AM ET (ABC News (Australia))

Facts

Also Known As	malignant neoplasm

Photos and Videos

precancerous growth in a human colon

cancer incidence and mortality in the United States

Brain cancer; magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)

macrophage attacking a cancer cell

Epstein-Barr virus

stereotatic biopsy

bone marrow transplantation

cancer research

Learn how researchers successfully demonstrated to separate the cancerous cells from the blood using sound waves

Know about the classification and treatment of cancers by focusing on the cells genetic pathways

Know about a cookbook with numerous nourishing recipes to deal with involuntary weight loss of cancer patients during the treatment

See All Videos and Images →

Topics

carcinogenesis stage retinoblastoma pancreatic cancer breast cancer prostate cancer colorectal cancer lung cancer bladder cancer stomach cancer cardiovascular disease respiratory disease diabetes mellitus sarcoma cyst polyp hamartoma gestational trophoblastic disease thyroid tumour muscle tumour

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Key People

Bruce Ames

American biochemist and geneticist

Stephen J. Elledge

American geneticist

Bert Vogelstein

American oncologist

David Baltimore.

David Baltimore

American virologist

Gregory P. Winter

British biochemst

Carol W. Greider

Carol W. Greider

American molecular biologist

William G. Kaelin, Jr.

American physician and medical researcher

Pott, Sir Percivall

Sir Percivall Pott

English surgeon

James P. Allison

American immunologist

Mukherjee, Siddhartha

Siddhartha Mukherjee

Indian-born American physician, scientist, and writer

Albert Bruce Sabin

American physician and microbiologist

Harold Varmus

Harold Varmus

American scientist

Peter J. Ratcliffe

British physician and scientist

Gregg L. Semenza

American physician

J. Michael Bishop

American scientist

Tasuku Honjo

Japanese immunologist

Elizabeth Stern

Canadian pathologist

E. Donnall Thomas

American physician

Renato Dulbecco, 1966.

Renato Dulbecco

Italian-American virologist

Salvador E. Luria.

Salvador Luria

Italian-American biologist

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