Cancer: Common Types & Treatments

Cancer is a disease caused by the uncontrolled growth and division of cells in the body. Because of cellular changes, cancerous cells lack the components that healthy cells have, which instruct them when to stop dividing and die. As a result, they build up and form tumors, impair the immune system, and prevent the body from functioning normally.

Certain forms of cancer result in visible growths called tumors, while others do not. Cancers are classified by their location in the body and the tissues they form in. For example, sarcomas develop in soft tissues or bones, while adenocarcinomas form in the breast.

Types

According to the National Cancer Institute, breast cancer is the most prevalent type of cancer in the U.S. It is followed by lung and prostate cancers.

Each year, more than 40,000 people across the country receive a diagnosis of one of the following types of cancer:

– Bladder

– Colon and rectal

– Endometrial

– Kidney

– Leukemia

– Liver

– Melanoma

– Non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma

– Pancreatic

– Thyroid

There are over a hundred types of cancer according to the NCI, although other forms are less common.

Treatments

Treatments are usually prescribed based on the type of cancer, its stage, and the patient’s overall health. To maximize effectiveness, doctors will often employ more than one type of treatment.

Chemotherapy: Uses medications that target and kill rapidly dividing cells. While it can help shrink tumors, the side effects are severe.

Hormone therapy: Uses medications that modify how certain hormones work or interfere with the body’s ability to produce them.

Immunotherapy: Uses medications and treatments like checkpoint inhibitors and adoptive cell transfer to boost and encourage the immune system to combat cancerous cells.

Radiation therapy: Uses high-dose radiation to kill cancerous cells. May be used to shrink a tumor before surgery.

Surgery: Often part of the treatment plan when a patient has a cancerous tumor. Lymph nodes may be removed to reduce/prevent metastasis.

Stem cell transplant: Involves removing red or white blood cells destroyed by chemotherapy or radiation These cells are then strengthened by lab technicians and put back into the body. This treatment is especially beneficial for people with blood-related cancers.

Targeted therapies like small-molecule drugs and monoclonal antibodies: Aims to prevent cancerous cells from multiplying and boost the immune system.

A newer, developing approach called precision or personalized medicine uses genetic testing to determine the best, most effective treatments for an individual’s presentation of cancer.