How cancer prevention works, and what you can do to lower your risk
April is Cancer Control Month
Cancer has been thought of as a tragic, unfair fact of life since the beginning of time. The oldest documented case of cancer is found in an ancient Egyptian papyrus textbook on surgery dating back to 3000 BCE. Of course, the word "cancer" is nowhere to be found, and surely cancerous tissue was found in humans and other animals long before the advent of writing. In the 5,000 years since that first description of cancer, the disease's origins and causes have been at the forefront of medical study. Even now, in the 21st century, there is no sign of a surefire cure in sight. It is for precisely that reason that cancer prevention remains an eternally important practice.
With no cure available, and treatments growing more and more expensive, knowing what to do and what not to do in order to decrease the chances of developing cancer is paramount. With this in mind, read on to learn what you need to know about cancer prevention.
Knowledge is power
As with any act of conscientious prevention, the bedrock of cancer prevention is the knowledge of what you are fighting against, what its causes are, and what you can do to best avoid it. With that in mind, let's start with some basics.
What exactly is cancer?
It's no secret that cancer is dangerous and deadly, but what exactly is it? Cancer begins as a tumor, an abnormal growth that can appear anywhere on or inside the body. If left untreated, cancerous cells can escape the tumor and start attacking the rest of the body.
Different types of tumors
All cancers, except for leukemia, start with a tumor, but there are different types of tumors. Tumors aren't actually all that uncommon, but thankfully many tumors end up being benign, or noncancerous. The cells that make up benign tumors are usually no different from other normal, healthy cells. Read More…
