What is cancer?
Uncontrolled cell division that can invade other tissue and impede their function
What is a tumour?
Any swelling Can be benign or malignant
What is a neoplasm?
New growth not in response to any stimulus
Define malignant
Metastatic potential is present This involves any neoplasm invading the basement membrane
What is metastasis?
The spreading of a neoplasm to a different part of the body
Give three pre-malignant stages
Metaplasia is a response to _____
Stress
What can initiate metaplasia?
Why are post-menopausal obese women at risk to hyperplasia (and cancer)?
Oestrogen will cause proliferation of the endometrium as part of the menstrual cycle. Cholesterol is similar in structure to oestrogen Obese women have high cholesterol which can cause proliferation in the endometrium Due to increased (an unnecessary) proliferations, these women have more “chances” for cells to begin to grown autonomously and for hyperplasia to occur
What occurs in dysplasia that does not occur in either metaplasia or hyperplasia?
A genetic abnormality is developed
What is carcinoma in-situ?
This is the final stage a neoplasm goes through before becoming malignant (invading basement membrane and spreading by metastases) This is the same as high-grade dysplasia
How is the N:C (nuclear:cytoplasmic) ratio affected in malignant cells affected?
N:C ratio is high
List some causes of cancer
What are Weinberg Hallmarks?
These are “bad decisions” made by a cell that are key to becoming malignant.
What is Li-Fraumeni syndrome?
Genetic condition affecting the tp53 gene which codes for p53. This means sufferers from LFS are unable to stop excessive growth and attempt DNA repairs (or activate apoptosis)
How does radiation cause cancer?
and What is Xeroderma pigmentosa?
Pyrimidine dimers are formed in DNA which are molecular lesions involving two consecutive bases on a single DNA strand to bind together ruining the normal base pairing Numerous instances can cause pyrimidine dimers in DNA to become overwhelmed
Describe briefly the cell cycle
What are oncogenes?
A gene with the potential to cause cancer It involves increased growth
What are tumour supressors?
These are genes preventing the pathway to cancer
How can neoplastic cells evade DNA spellchecking?
Destroying spellcheck proteins such as P53
What happens to a tumour in the bloodstream?
It will aggregate with platelets This means it will eventually slow down and stop within a blood vessel and grow in this new location
Name 2 growth factors that can aid angiogenesis (for neoplasms)
What are the three stages involved in the pathway of mutations and neoplasm development?
FISH is better than PCR for _____ genetic abnormalities
Large