What is cancer?
There are over 100 different types of cancer.1,2 When abnormal cells multiply in an uncontrolled way, that’s cancer. Sometimes they spread into other tissues, affecting other parts of the body.1-3
- Some growths are non-cancerous (benign). This means that it does not spread to other parts of the body, grows slowly, has a distinct border, and does not invade nearby tissue. They are often treated with surgery or sometimes with chemotherapy, immunotherapy or radiation therapy to help reduce the risk of them returning, to help ease any discomfort or to help relieve any medical issue they may be causing.2
- Harmful cancer growths are called malignant tumours. They can grow quickly, have irregular borders, often invade surrounding tissues, and can spread to other parts of the body (called metastasis). Treatment may consist of chemotherapy, immunotherapy, surgery, radiation therapy, or a combination.2
FAQs
A primary tumour is where a cancer starts, if it spreads to other parts of the body, that’s a secondary tumour or metastasis.88,89
Malignant cells are cells which grown in an uncontrolled way and spread to other parts of the body.90
Some of the most common cancers in women are breast cancer and bowel cancer - in men, prostate cancer is the most common, followed by bowel cancer.61
There are a lot of factors that influence how cancer can be treated:91
- The type of cancer
- Where the tumour’s located
- How fast it’s growing
- How advanced the cancer is
- Your age and general health
- How you’d like your cancer to be treated
Please note: The links below are outside of GenesisCare who cannot accept responsibility for the content.
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