Cancer genomics and proteomics Types of Cancer How Cancer StartsTreatment and Strategies
Links of interest: Cancer Immunome Database Cancer Research Institute Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center (see also Memorial Sloan free physician referral service at 800-525-2225 to gain access to world-renowened physicians for treamtent or a second opinion). Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) International Cancer Genome Consortium
American Cancer Society American Joint Committe on Cancer (AJCC) World Health Organization Clinical Trials Center for Cancer Research Clinical Trials Cancer.net (list links for finding clinical trials)
Advocacy Groups of Cancer: New Cures for Cancer
See also Treatment of Cancer
Introduction/Definitions:
Cancer is the second leading cause of death in the United States, after heart disease. More than one million Americans are diagnosed with cancer each year, with this number likely to increase as the population ages. Cancer kills one out of six people in the developed world. Among men, the three most commonly diagnosed cancers are prostate, lung and colorectal cancer in developed countries.
A neoplasm is an abnormal mass, the growth of which is purposeless, autonomous and with a tendency to be an atypical and aggressive, new growth. Oncology is the study of such neoplasms.
Solid tumors are composed to two prinicpal structures; (1) the malignant cell itself, and supporting cells, including connective tissue and vessels that comprise the stroma, which plays a fundamental role in nutritional support and the removal of waste products for tumor cells. One type of tumor associated stromal cell is the myofibroblast which develop in the neoplastic environment as tumor cells grow and progress and play an essential role in tumor cell metastasis by stimulating angiogenesis via secretion fo stromal derived factor (SDF_-1 and by controlling the formation of the extracellular matrix via secretion of matrix metalloproteases. Cho (Gynecologic Oncology, 123 (2011) 379-386)
Normal tissue homeostasis is acheived by an intricate balance between the rate of cell proliferation and cell death. Disruption of this balance can result in the abnormal growth of cells and is thought to be a major event in the development of cancer. (Sgouros, US 2009/0054720)
Pathology:
Introduction:
Cancer is a class of diseases in which a group of cells display uncontrolled growth, invasion and sometimes metastasis. Cancer begins as a single cell that progresses through mutations to a malignancy. “Cancer” or “tumor” refers to any neoplastic growth in a subject. The cancer can be of the liquid or solid tumor type. Liquid tumors include tumors of hematological origin (e.g., mylomas, luekemias, lymphomas). Solid tumors can originate in organs (e.g., lungs, breasts, prostate, colon, cervix, liver). While there are over 100 distinct types of cancer, transformed malignant cells in all of the cancers can exhibit the following common properties: (1) loss of anchorage dependent: whereas normal cells need to attach to surfaces in order to survive, cancerous cells can be found floating in suspension cultures; (2) loss of contact inhibition; whereas normal cells will arrest growth after they have filled up a defined area, malignant cells have no respect for this contact inhibition; (3) focus formation: in tissue cultures a single cell is transformed leading to a single cancerous colony; (4) genetic abnormalities such as deletions, translocations and chromosomal ploidy, (5) evasion of programmed cell death or apoptosis, (6) larger nuclear to cytoplasmic ratios (7) sustained angiogeniesis through the secretion of growth factors (8) tissue invasion & metastasis of cancerous cells to other tissues (8) limitless replicative potential; (8) insensitivity to anti-grwoth signals and (9) self-sufficiency in groqth signals.
Epigenetic Deregulation:
Epigenetic deregulation has been associated with worse prognosis in a wide spectrum of malignancies, including lung, breast and prostate cancer. Epigenetic silencing can occur at multiple levels, with DNA methylation and chromatin deacetylation having been dientified, as two major determinants. On this basis, multiple lcincial studies have shown promising clinical activity in the management of solid malignancies when combinin inhibitors of DNA methyl transferases (DNMT) or histone deacetylases (HDACs) including vorinostate and entinostate with tytotoxic agents.
Histone acetylation affects gene expression.
—-Histone Deacetylases (HDACs): are enzymes which catalyze the removal of acetyl groups form lysine residues in the amino terminal tails of the nucleosomal core histones. As such HDACs toether with histone acetyle transferases (HATs) regualte the acetylation status of histones.