QUITE THE TASK!
The task of simplifying cancer as a disease, is itself complex, very complex. With that said, the main goal of this post is to try and lay the basic principles and ideas relating to cancer, how it develops, why it develops, and more. In addition, the post will address common wrong beliefs, myths, and more.
Cancer is a leading cause of suffering and death around the world, especially in the developed world. Cancer is often diagnosed with various backgrounds such as life style, infections, inflammations and genetic and epigenetic changes due to mutagens (mutation causing factors). Gender, ethnicity, and heredity are uncontrolled influencers of cancer.
A person's environment and behavior can be an influencer of cancer development. Cancer is not one disease and has more than 100 different medical conditions under the term cancer. Some of the causes of cancer can be controlled and some cannot be controlled, slowly, step by step and with enormous money invested, treatments are found. Cancer is one of the most researched topics in the world, and one of the most costly to research as well.
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Cancer is characterized by a tumor that is an over-growth of tissue, that no longer complies to the normal rules of the body and has no useful purpose. A tumor is defined as a “new growth” termed as neoplasm. A bit vague of a definition. Thus, not all tumors and neoplasms are cancerous. For example: hypertrophy (increased tissue mass) is a sort of neoplasm, but is not cancerous. A malignant tumor is defined as cancer.
Please note: The fact that a tumor or neoplasm are not cancerous, does not necessarily make them any less life threatening.
Tumors that are benign (non-cancerous) may cause obstruction, blockage or mechanical pressure leading to severe symptoms. Any thing with mass results in weight while multiplied by gravity. Anything with a weight greater than zero applies mechanical pressure. The greater the mass, the greater the mechanical pressure applied locally, and the greater the space it takes up, perhaps at the expense of other tissues of the body.
I am aware that the following two questions might seem extremely weird and unrelated to cancer as a disease, at first. Yet, bear with me, and I will explain and clarify. As the post advances, and more knowledge is given, I hope it will make sense. Here goes: 1) How many calories does superman consume on a daily basis? 2) Imagine you have been starving for days (have not eaten anything for a week); You see an amazing looking, amazing smelling pie on the ledge of your neighbor's house. Do you eat from it?
Contrary to the beliefs of some, cancer might be caused by external and environmental factors/reasons, yet it is your own body cells that transform and develop the characteristics of the disease known as cancer. A person can assume that their body has cancerous cells at any time, the question is how many, are they active or dormant?, and will they become active, violent, or spread (metastasize).
Well, did you figure the answers to my two questions yet? - my first assumption is that any super powers demand an extremely amount of calories consumed to sustain such powers. Accordingly, if a biological cell were to obtain biological super powers (relative to a normal cell), it energy consumption would spike, and cause it to constantly be "hungry" for energy of any sort. My second assumptions is, that the will to survive and live, will overcome anything else, and you will eat from the neighbor's pie. By the way, no judgement here on my behalf, I get it...I understand!
My third assumption is that the hungrier you become, the more you will be willing to do, the more daring you will become, and the less limitations you will apply to yourself behavior wise. Now let's imagine how many neighbor's pies will a person with super powers that is also extremely hungry have or choose to steal. Is this the right time to suggest that in order to eat the neighbor's pie, you probably had to invade their space, land, or property!
Normal cells, under normal circumstances and conditions, are subjected to multiple levels of supervision (the ability to know what is going on) and regulation (the ability to sustain or change function). As is the case for any cell, tissue, organ, and system, the lose of supervision and regulation results in abnormal function, a syndrome, clinical condition, or disease. In essence, cancer is no different. Cells that have become cancerous, often show abnormal supervision and regulation, if at all.
Altered or lack of supervision and regulation may cause a cell to develop super powers due to the lack of limitations to function. The more the cell loses supervision and regulation, the more biological super powers it gains, the more its energetic consumption (energetic demands) increase. This begs the question: what happens when the cell itself becomes incapable of meeting the new and growing energetic demands of a now cancerous cell?
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The cell now begins to "eyeball" the neighboring cells and their energetic resources. Soon enough, the cancerous cell sets out to take those resources for itself, invading the neighboring cells, and spreading (i.e. metastasizing in medical terms). As taught in a previous post, the use of oxygen will create more energy for the cell from any substrate broken down (carbs, fat, and proteins). Thus, it should not come as a surprise that a cancerous cell with abnormally high energetic demands, seeks oxygen first and foremost.
Accordingly, cancerous cells aspire to connect to the blood stream, as it contains a vast volume of of oxygen, since red blood cells carry hemoglobin, that in turn carries oxygen (or CO2; our focus is on the oxygen). More so, cancer spreads evermore faster and extensively, if a physical connection is made with blood supply. Clinical research has shown that cancerous cells directly infused with oxygen, either reduced or stopped altogether their need to spread (metastasize).
Future posts in this mini series dedicated to cancer, will deepen our knowledge, and empower us. Knowledge itself is power (KIIP). Stay tuned.
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