We humans have emerged as masters of evolution crowning our achievements with our accomplishments in the medical field. From the time of ayurveda to this modern medical period we have continued to research the uncharted and master our knowledge. In Egypt around 3000 BC a disease was discovered which was soon to baffle the world, it is called cancer or 'Neoplasm' which has affected 18.1 million people worldwide,till date.
Cancer arises from a complex interplay of genetic, environmental, and lifestyle factors. At its core, cancer is a result of errors in the intricate dance of cellular replication and regulation. There is no particular pinpoint to its cause. The process often begins with genetic mutations that accumulate in a cell's DNA, which occur due to carcinogens, chemicals or radiation. Cancer cells soon lose the ability to control the cell division cycle(mitosis). Apoptosis, or programmed cell death eliminates damaged or unwanted cells, the cancer cells soon evade this mechanism allowing them to accumulate into tumours. Tumours require blood supply to grow and spread, hence angiogenesis (formation of new blood vessels) occurs to provide nutrients, oxygen to the tumour. Cancer cells invade nearby tissues and spread in the body. This involves changes in cell adhesion and causes the degradation of the extracellular matrix, allowing cancer cells to break away from the primary tumour and travel through the bloodstream or lymphatic system. The immune system can recognize and eliminate cancer cells but these cells have become masters of disguise in evading their captors by altering their surface proteins. The tumours heterogeneity makes it challenging to treat and overtime become non-responsive to treatment. Smoking, age, obesity are a few causes. Breast, bronchus, prostate, and colorectal cancers are the most common. Over the years several promising treatments have been developed such as immunotherapy, nanotechnology, virotherapy, hyperthermia, chemotherapy etc, as we pray that we will soon defeat the emperor of all maladies, cancer.
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