Category: Cancer
Screening for Ovarian cancer
Ovarian cancer is the fifth leading cause of cancer deaths among American women and has a very high mortality rate. The 5-year survival rate is 75% if the cancer is confined to the ovaries and decreases markedly in women in whom the disease has spread. Unfortunately, this cancer is frequently diagnosed later in the course [...]
Screening for Cervical cancer
Cancer of the cervix is the most common cancer of the reproductive organs after endometrial and ovarian cancers. Nearly 13,000 new cases of cervical cancer are diagnosed every year in the United States, with over 4,000 deaths attributed to this illness. Pap smears have resulted in significant reductions in deaths due to cervical cancer. Interestingly, [...]
Screening for Endometrial cancer
Endometrial cancer begins in the endometrium, the inner lining of the uterus. Approximately 40,000 cancers of the endometrium are found each year. It is the most common gynecologic cancer; however, it has a relatively low death rate with fewer than 7,000 deaths every year. The peak incidence of endometrial cancer is between the ages of [...]
Cancer Screening
Screening and prevention play a key role in the management of cervical and endometrial cancer, and have a more limited role in ovarian cancer. Breast cancer screening is covered in the entry on Mammography. Screening for: Ovarian cancer; Cervical cancer; Endometrial cancer. SEE ALSO: Cervical cancer, Ovarian cancer, Uterine cancer
Cancer
Around 400 BC, Hippocrates described the long, bulky veins spread around some breast tumors as resembling the limbs of a crab, hence its name—karkinoma in Greek and, later, its Latin equivalent cancer. Although cancer is not one disease, all cancers share one characteristic and it is the uncontrolled growth of cells. Our normal body is [...]
Causes of cancer
Examples of external factors that contribute to accumulation of muted genes leading to cancer are: physical inactivity, tobacco and alcohol, nutrition, radiation and chemicals, bacteria and viruses, medications, and reproductive factors. Although the exact biological mechanism for some of these factors by which they contribute to cancer remain elusive, results from epidemiological studies provide clear [...]