Cancer

SOME CANCER FACTS

• Cancer can occur at any age, but mostly appears in people middle-aged and older.
• Cancer causes more deaths in American children aged one to 14 years than any other disease.
• In the 1980s more than 4.5 million Americans died from cancer.
• About 83 million people alive today--or one in three Americans--will eventually get cancer.
• Cancer cost the United States roughly $104 billion in 1990--including medical expenses and loss of work productivity.
• Approximately 520,000 Americans die of cancer each year.

What Is Cancer?

The millions of cells that make up the body normally reproduce in an orderly manner, replacing worn-out tissues and repairing injuries to maintain health. However, certain cells may begin to reproduce abnormally, massing together to form tumors.

If a tumor is benign, it will remain self-contained. A malignant--or cancerous--tumor, on the other hand, will invade neighboring tissues, and can spread through the blood and lymphatic systems to distant parts of the body in a process called metastasis.

Cancer is not one disease, but rather many related diseases. Cancer is typed according to the part of the body where it is located and the kind of cells that comprise it. The most common types of cancer cells and their locations are:

• Carcinomas originate in skin tissue or tissues that line the body cavities and such internal organs as the lungs, breast, colon, and intestines.
• Sarcomas grow in bones and connective tissues between organs and skin, and sometimes spread into the blood or lymphatic system.
• Lymphomas are cancers of the lymphatic system, usually occurring in the lymph nodes.
• Leukemias form in the blood or circulatory system, particularly in the bone marrow, which is the site of blood cell production.
• Myelomas are tumors of bone marrow cells and frequently form simultaneously in many sites, including the ribs, vertebrae, and pelvic bones.

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