Basic information regard to cancer

1. An overview of Cancer
By
Mahalakshmi B
Assistant Professor
MVJ College of Nursing
Hoskote, Bangalore

3.  9.6 million people die from cancer every
year.
 At least one third of common cancers are
preventable.
 Cancer is the second-leading cause of
death worldwide.
 70% of cancer deaths occur in low-to-
middle income countries.
 Up to 3.7 million lives could be saved
each year by implementing resource
appropriate strategies for prevention, early
detection and treatment.

4.  A disease which occurs when changes in a group of
normal cells within the body lead to uncontrolled,
abnormal growth forming a lump called a tumour –
true of all cancers except
 leukaemia (cancer of the blood).
 If left untreated, tumours can grow and spread into
the surrounding normal tissue, or to other parts of
the body
 the bloodstream and lymphatic systems, and can
affect the digestive, nervous and circulatory systems
or release hormones that may affect body function.

5. Division of
Tumours
Benign Malignant Precancerous

6. Benign
• grows quite slowly,
• do not spread to other
parts of the body
• usually made up of cells
quite similar to normal
or healthy cells.
• cause a problem if they
grow very large,
becoming uncomfortable
or press on other organs
- for example a brain
tumour inside the skull.
• are not cancerous
Malignant
• Grows faster than benign
tumours
• ability to spread and destroy
neighbouring tissue.
• Cells of malignant tumours
can break off from the main
(primary) tumour and spread
to other parts of the body
through a process known
as metastasis.
• invades healthy tissue at the
new site they continue to
divide and grow.
• These secondary sites are
known as metastases and the
condition is referred to as
metastatic cancer.
Precancerous
• describes the condition
involving abnormal cells
which may (or is likely
to) develop into cancer.

7. • Arises from the epithelial cells
• Invade surrounding tissues, organs, metastasis to
the Lymph nodes and other area of the body
• Common forms of cancer are breast , prostrate,
lung and colon
Carcinoma
• malignant tumour of the bone or soft tissue (fat,
muscle, blood vessels, nerves and other
connective tissues that support and surround
organs).
• common forms of sarcoma are leiomyosarcoma,
liposarcoma and osteosarcoma
Sarcoma
• Arise in the cells of the immune system
• Lymphoma is a cancer of the lymphatic system
• Myeloma (or multiple myeloma) starts in the
plasma cells, a type of white blood cell that
produces antibodies to help fight infection.
Lymphoma
& Myeloma

8. • Occurs in the white blood cells and bone marrow,
the tissue that forms blood cells.
• There are several subtypes; common are
lymphocytic leukaemia and chronic lymphocytic
leukaemia
Leukemia
• central nervous system cancers.
• Some are benign while others can grow and
spread.
Brain and
Spinal Cord

9.  Modifiable risk factors
 Alcohol
 Being overweight or
obese
 Diet and nutrition
 Physical activity
 Tobacco
 Ionizing radiation
 Work place hazards
 Infection
 Non-modifiable risk
factors
 Age
 Cancer-causing
substances
(carcinogens)
 Genetics
 The immune system

10. Unusual lumps or swelling – cancerous
lumps are often painless and may increase
in size as the cancer progresses

11. Coughing, breathlessness or difficulty
swallowing – be aware of persistent coughing
episodes, breathlessness or difficulty swallowing

12. Changes in bowel habit
– such as constipation
and diarrhoea and/or
blood found in the stools
Unexpected bleeding –
includes bleeding from the
vagina, anal passage, or blood
found in stools, in urine or
when coughing

13. Unexplained weight loss – a
large amount of unexplained
and unintentional weight loss
over a short period of time (a
couple of months)
Fatigue – which shows itself as
extreme tiredness and a severe lack
of energy. If fatigue is due to
cancer, sufferers normally also have
other symptoms

14. Pain or ache – includes
unexplained or ongoing pain,
or pain that comes and goes
New mole or changes to a mole – look
for changes in size, shape, or colour and
if it becomes crusty or bleeds or oozes

15. Complications with urinating –
includes needing to urinate
urgently, more frequently, or being
unable to go when you need to or
experiencing pain while urinating
Unusual breast changes –
look for changes in size, shape
or feel, skin changes and pain

16. A sore or ulcer that won’t heal –
including a spot, sore wound or
mouth ulcer
Appetite loss –
feeling less hungry
than usual for a
prolonged period
of time

17. Heartburn or indigestion
– persistent or painful
heartburn or indigestion
Heavy night sweats – be aware of
very heavy, drenching night sweats

18. Over a third of all cancers can be prevented by reducing your exposure to risk
factors such as
tobacco, obesity, physical inactivity, infections, alcohol, environmental
pollution, occupational carcinogens and radiation.
Prevention of certain cancers may also be effective through vaccination
against the Hepatitis B Virus (HBV) and the Human Papilloma Virus (HPV),
helping to protect against liver cancer and cervical cancer respectively.
Reducing exposures to other carcinogens such as environmental pollution,
occupational carcinogens and radiation could help prevent further cancers.

19.  There are a number of cancers which can be
identified early which helps to improve the chances
of successful treatment outcomes, often at lower
costs and with fewer (or less significant) side effects
for patients.
 There are cost-effective tests that help detect
colorectal, breast, cervical and oral cancers early and
further tests are being developed for other cancers.

21. Treatment
depends on
the type of
cancer
where cancer is,
how big it is,
whether it has
spread
General health.

22. Types of
Treatment
Surgery
Chemo
therapy
Radio
therapy
Hormone
therapy
Immunot
herapy
Gene
therapy

23. Surgery
 If a cancer has not metastasized (spread), surgery can remove the
entire cancer which may completely cure the disease.
Often, this is effective in removing the prostate or a breast or testicle.
Radiotherapy
 Radiation treatment or radiotherapy uses high-energy rays to reduce a
tumour or destroy cancer cells as a stand-alone treatment and in some
cases in combination with other cancer treatments.

24. Chemotherapy
 Chemotherapy uses chemicals to interfere with the way cells divide -
damaging of DNA - so that cancer cells will destroy themselves.
 These treatments target any rapidly dividing cells (not necessarily
just cancer cells), but normal cells usually can recover from any
chemical-induced damage while cancer cells cannot.
 Chemotherapy is generally used to treat cancer that has spread or
metastasized because the medicines travel throughout the entire body.
It is a necessary treatment for some forms of leukaemia and
lymphoma.

25. Immunotherapy
 Immunotherapy uses the body's own immune system to fight the
cancer tumour.
 Immunotherapy may treat the whole body by giving an agent that
can shrink tumours.
Hormone therapy
 Several cancers have been linked to some types of hormones,
including breast and prostate cancer.
 Hormone therapy works to change hormone production in the body
so that cancer cells stop growing or are killed completely.

26. Gene therapy
 The goal of gene therapy is to replace damaged genes with ones
that work to address a root cause of cancer: damage to DNA.
 Other gene-based therapies focus on further damaging cancer cell
DNA to the point where the cell destroys themselves. However,
gene therapy is new and has not yet resulted in any successful
treatments.

27. Survivorship
 Survivorship focuses on
 health and the physical, psychological, social and economic issues affecting
people after the end of the primary treatment for cancer,
 including people who have no disease after finishing treatment,
 people who continue to receive treatment to reduce the risk of the cancer coming
back and
 people with well controlled disease and few symptoms, who receive treatment to
manage cancer as a chronic disease.

28.  Survivorship care includes issues related to
 follow-up care,
 the management of late side-effects of treatment,
 the improvement of quality of life and psychological and emotional
health.
 Survivorship care includes also future anticancer treatment where
applicable.
 Family members, friends and caregivers should also be considered as part
of the survivorship experience.

29. Palliative care
 Palliative care runs throughout a patient’s journey from
diagnosis to cure or end of life, and is designed to
relieve symptoms and improve a cancer patient’s quality
of life.
 It can be used to respond to troubling symptoms such as
pain or sickness, and also to reduce or control the side
effects of cancer treatments.
 In advanced cancer, palliative treatment might help
someone to live longer and to live comfortably, even if
they cannot be cured.

30. Awareness, understanding,
myths and misinformation
Access to information and
knowledge about cancer can
empower us all.

31. Prevention and risk reduction
Over one third of cancers are
preventable, which means we all
can reduce our cancer risk.

32. Equity in access to cancer services
Life-saving cancer diagnosis,
treatment and care should be equal
for all – no matter where you live,
what your income, your ethnicity or
gender.

33. Government action and
accountability
Governments can influence many
of the levers to reduce and prevent
cancer.

34. Beyond physical: mental
and emotional Impact
The impact of cancer goes far beyond
physical health, impacting the mental
and emotional wellbeing of patients
and their caregivers.

35. Saving lives saves money
The financial impact on nations,
individuals and families have a huge
impact on sustainable economic and
human development. By focusing on
saving lives, we can also save money

36. Reducing the skills gap
A shortage of skilled healthcare
workers is one of the greatest
barriers in delivering quality cancer
care.
Working together as one
By joining forces, we help to
strengthen efforts that stimulate
powerful advocacy, action and
accountability at every level.

37. The Cancer Atlas: History of Cancer
 Explore a timeline of the history of cancer from BCE
to 2011
 National Cancer Institute: Dictionary of Cancer
Terms
 Cancer terms explained
International Agency for Research on Cancer:
Global Cancer Observatory
 An interactive web-based platform presenting global
and national cancer statistics to inform cancer
control and research

38. World Health Organization: Cancer Country
Profiles
Synthesized national cancer data by country,
including data on mortality, incidence and risk
factors
The Cancer Atlas: Risk Factors
 Understanding risk factors and causes of cancer

39. The Cancer Atlas: How to take action
 Discover the opportunities for controlling cancer
World Cancer Research Fund: Facts and
Figures on specific cancers
 World Cancer Research Fund International is the
world’s leading authority on cancer prevention
research related to diet, weight and physical
activity

40. World Cancer Research Fund International: Cancer
prevention recommendations
 Explore the recommendations on helping to prevent
cancer
Cancer.Net: Individual guides on each type of cancer
 Access over 120 individualized and oncologist-approved
guides
Cancer.Net: Questions to ask your doctor
 Find guidance on what to ask your health team, as
approved by the American Society of Clinical Oncology

41.  National Comprehensive Cancer Network:
Cancer Staging
 Understand what cancer stages mean
 National Cancer Institute: Types of treatment
 Understand the treatment options for cancer

42. National Comprehensive Cancer Network:
Patient and Caregiver Resources
 These guidelines and video resources are aimed
specifically at individuals with cancer and their
caregivers
Rethink Breast Cancer: Care guidelines
 This guide is aimed at young women with breast
cancer to help them navigate their treatment

43. UICC and Bupa: Working with cancer
 A resource for both employers and employees
International Psycho Oncology Society:
Survivorship
 Download a practical guide for patients and
caregivers

44. Medical News Today: Most recent research
breakthroughs
 Read about how close we are to finding more
effective treatments
Union for International Cancer Control:
Members
 Find a national cancer organization near you