Your body is made up of approximately 75 trillion cells. It is hard to believe that these cells are continuously replicating with minimal damage and changes to the cell structure and body function on a daily basis. Sometimes however, cells can become damaged during cell reproduction and thus lead to the production and proliferation of malignant tumours (cancer).

Cells are your body's building block

Each cell must have oxygen, nutrients, and waste management and must also be defended from attack. It helps the body to keep all our cells healthy by grouping them according to function. A group of cells with similar traits is called a tissue. A group of tissues with similar traits is called an organ. A group of organs performing together is a system and a group of systems working together makes up the organism.

What do your cells do?

When you, the organism become sick or injured, the cause can often be traced through systems, organs, tissues and even to the cellular level. This detective process can help identify the cause of your ailment. Cells have different healing capacities and thus are categorised into three groups: labile, stable and permanent. Labile cells produce readily and have a high turnover. Examples include skins cells, red and white blood cells and cells in the gastrointestinal tract. Stable cells are capable of reproducing, but only when they must, such as when they are damaged. Examples of stable cells are found in many organs. Permanent cells are those that you have for life. They reproduce slowly, if at all. When they are destroyed, they do not come back (nerve cells and muscle cells).

Cells receive their instructions on how to behave from their genes. Genes are made of DNA carried on long strands called chromosomes. DNA is a long line of chemicals arranged like words in a sentence that instruct your cells how to behave. Each cell of your body has the same genes as the original but the genes instruct cells to behave differently, according to whether they are nerve cells or bone cells, etc. There are also genes to keep your cells healthy, help them repair, instruct cells to grow, reproduce and if necessary, and tell the cell when to die.

The Cancer story

The cancer story starts here – cell reproduction (mitosis). Cell reproduction is when one cell replicates its genes then divides so that a duplicate cell is formed. Sometimes the genes of a cell are damaged during mitosis and thus this creates mutated genes in the new cells. Most of these mutations are corrected without us knowing by either repairing the deformation, the cell dies, or the cell is destroyed by the body's immune system. However, occasionally the cell with the mutated gene manages to reproduce, thereby creating tissue that does not behave like the body surrounding it. This altered tissue is called a Tumour. Tumours can be benign or malignant with a benign tumour being slower growing and encased in a membrane. In contrast, a malignant tumour tends to be more rapidly growing and will spread tumour cells around the body (metastasise) more freely.

Reducing your risk

Oxidants are chemicals found in every cell. An example of an oxidant is a free radical. They are the bi-product of daily living and can cause errors in your genes. Luckily, you have genes that instruct your cells to make antioxidants that help block the damaging effects of oxidants. You also get antioxidants in your food, mostly from fruit and vegetables, nature's best cancer-fighting recipe.

Everyone has different genes. That means some people are better able to repair damaged genes while others have more risk. Some people have less risk because they are exposed to less cancer causing agents like non-smokers and people who protect themselves from the sun. Other people have less risk because they eat foods that protect against cancer such as fruits and vegetables.

As a last line of defence, tumour suppressor genes will often save the day. When genetic faults in a cell are not being repaired and oxidants build up, tumour suppressor genes will signal to the immune system to destroy the cell. In this way, the cell is sacrificed to protect the whole body.

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