Cancer

Question 1

What is a tumour?

What 3 types could they be?

Answer 1

Any kind of mass forming a lesion.

May be neoplastic, hamartomatous or inflammatory.

Question 2

What is a neoplasm?

Answer 2

The autonomous growth of tissue which have escape normal constraints on cell proliferation

Question 3

Benign vs malignant neoplasms?

Answer 3

Benign = remain localised
Malignant = invade locally/spread to distant sites.

Question 4

What are hamartomas?

What is the difference between them and neoplasms.

Answer 4

Localised benign overgrowth of one or mature cell types for example in the lung. They represent architectural but not cytological abnormalities.

Neoplasms have cytological abnormalities and cell growth is not regulated.

Question 5

What are heterotopias?

Answer 5

Normal tissue found in parts of the body where they are not normally present e.g. pancreas in wall of large intestine.

Question 6

What type of tumour is squamous epithelioma?

Answer 6

Benign squamous

Question 7

What type of tumour is squamous cell carcinoma?

Answer 7

Malignant squamous

Question 8

What type of tumour is adenoma?

Answer 8

Benign glandular

Question 9

What type of tumour is adenocarcinoma?

Answer 9

Malignant glandular

Question 10

What type of tumour is transitional papilloma?

Answer 10

Benign transitional

Question 11

What type of tumour is transitional cell carcinoma?

Answer 11

Malignant transitional

Question 12

What type of tumour is leiomyoma?

Answer 12

Benign smooth muscle

Question 13

What type of tumour is leiomyosarcoma?

Answer 13

Malignant smooth muscle?

Question 14

What type of tumour is osteoma?

Answer 14

Benign bone

Question 15

What type of tumour is osteosarcoma?

Answer 15

Malignant bone

Question 16

What is a teratoma?

Answer 16

Tumours made up of multiple types of tissue not usually found at the site. It can contain fully developed tissue and organs such as hair,muscle and bone.

Question 17

4 differences between benign and malignant tumours

Answer 17

Invasion - does in directly extend into adjacent connective tissue and/or other structures.

Metastasis - spread via blood vessels to other parts of the body.

Differentiation - how much do the tumour cells resemble the cells from the tissue it is derived from.

Growth pattern - how much does the tissue architecture resemble the tissue it is derived from.

Question 18

What are the 5 ways neoplasms can spread?

Answer 18

1. Direct extension
2. Haematogenous - via blood vessels.
3. Lymphatic - via lymphatics to lymph nodes and beyond. Pattern of spread is dictated by normal lymphatic drainage of organs in question.
4. Transcoelomic- via seeding of body cavities
5. Perineural - via nerves

Question 19

How do we assess tumour spread?

Answer 19

1. Clinically
2. Radiologically
3. Pathologically

Question 20

How does the TNM system describe tumour stage?

Answer 20

T = tumour - tumour size and extent of local invasion.

N = nodes - number of lymph nodes involved

M = metastases - presence of distant metastases

Question 21

What is grade and stage in tumour prognosis?

Answer 21

Grade - how far differentiated the tumour is.

Stage - how far the tumour has spread

Stage is more important than grade in tumour prognosis