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What is cancer?
Cancer isn't a single illness. Cancer is the name given to a group of diseases that start in the body's basic building blocks, the cells. There are many types of cells in the body. These cells usually grow and divide and produce more healthy cells when the body needs them. If this process of cell growth and division is damaged, cells can keep on dividing and growing over other cells when they are not needed. This mass of extra cells is called a tumor.
There are two types of tumors: benign and malignant. Benign tumors are not cancer. Malignant tumors are cancer. Cells in malignant tumors are abnormal. They divide and grow in a hodge-podge fashion, without control. Like an invading army, these cells can invade and damage nearby organs or tissues. These malignant cells can move away from a malignant tumor and travel through the bloodstream to other sites in the body. The spread of cancer is called metastasis.
Several cancers carry the name of the area of the body in which they begin. Cancer that starts in the breast is called breast cancer. Cancer that begins in the lung is called lung cancer. Some types of cancer are named for the cell in which they grow. Melanoma, a skin cancer, begins in a cell known as a melanocyte. Cancer that has spread from one area to another is still called by the original name. For example, breast cancer that spreads to the nearby bone is known as metastatic breast cancer and is not bone cancer.
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Disclaimer: The information provided on this website is for educational purposes only and does not serve as a replacement for care provided by your own personal health care team. This website does not render or provide medical advice, and no individual should make any medical decisions or change their health behavior based on information provided here. All pertinent content provided on this website should be discussed with your personal physician to evaluate whether it has any relevance to or impact on your specific condition. Reliance on any information provided by this website is solely at your own risk.
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