Esophageal Cancer
Ben Stern
Esophageal Cancer
In August 2011, my grandmother died of esophageal cancer. Cancer is the uncontrolled growth of abnormal cells in the body, and cells divide rapidly. Cancer starts as a tumor located in a specific part of the body. A tumor is an abnormal growth of body tissue. There are two types of tumors; benign and malignant. A benign tumor is a tumor that is not cancerous, so it has not yet spread to other parts of the body, but is localized in one area. They grow slowly and until they become a malignant tumor, they are not very harmful. A malignant tumor is one that is cancerous, where the cancer cells start traveling to other parts of the body. Cancer cells invade and damage tissues and organs, and can enter the bloodstream. Proto-oncogenes, a gene in normal cells, both promote and inhibit cell division at the same time. In cancer cells both of these functions are stopped, and cells stop entering G0, the period of the cell cycle where a cell rests and completes basic functions, instead of dividing. Because of this, cells start dividing rapidly. These rapidly dividing cells start off located in a specific location of the body, and as they divide, create a lump, or a tumor. This is known as the benign stage. As the tumor grows, overtime the tumor becomes attached to blood vessels, and travels throughout the rest of the body. Once this happens, the tumor becomes malignant, and is very hard to cure. As stated earlier, I chose esophageal cancer because that was the cancer my grandmother died of a year and a half ago. This cancer starts in the esophagus, a tube that runs from the throat to the stomach for food to travel through. There are two types of esophageal cancer. The first is called squamous cell, squamous cells make up the outermost lining of the esophagus, and this type can affect any part of the lining.
The second type, adenocarcinoma, develops in the lower part of the esophagus, near the stomach. Esophageal Cancer consists of five
Esophageal Cancer
In August 2011, my grandmother died of esophageal cancer. Cancer is the uncontrolled growth of abnormal cells in the body, and cells divide rapidly. Cancer starts as a tumor located in a specific part of the body. A tumor is an abnormal growth of body tissue. There are two types of tumors; benign and malignant. A benign tumor is a tumor that is not cancerous, so it has not yet spread to other parts of the body, but is localized in one area. They grow slowly and until they become a malignant tumor, they are not very harmful. A malignant tumor is one that is cancerous, where the cancer cells start traveling to other parts of the body. Cancer cells invade and damage tissues and organs, and can enter the bloodstream. Proto-oncogenes, a gene in normal cells, both promote and inhibit cell division at the same time. In cancer cells both of these functions are stopped, and cells stop entering G0, the period of the cell cycle where a cell rests and completes basic functions, instead of dividing. Because of this, cells start dividing rapidly. These rapidly dividing cells start off located in a specific location of the body, and as they divide, create a lump, or a tumor. This is known as the benign stage. As the tumor grows, overtime the tumor becomes attached to blood vessels, and travels throughout the rest of the body. Once this happens, the tumor becomes malignant, and is very hard to cure. As stated earlier, I chose esophageal cancer because that was the cancer my grandmother died of a year and a half ago. This cancer starts in the esophagus, a tube that runs from the throat to the stomach for food to travel through. There are two types of esophageal cancer. The first is called squamous cell, squamous cells make up the outermost lining of the esophagus, and this type can affect any part of the lining.
The second type, adenocarcinoma, develops in the lower part of the esophagus, near the stomach. Esophageal Cancer consists of five