Information On Cancer Metastasis Research

By Ruth Hayes


Doctors have done their best to come up with as many vaccines and cures for diseases as possible to prevent further affecting of the human tissues. They even came up with antiretroviral drugs to help manage the HIV/AIDS epidemic. However, although they have tried, they are yet to find a way to deal with cancer without drastic repercussions. The article below elaborates more on cancer metastasis research.

Most people take it that to be diagnosed with cancer is to be handed the death sentence. However, this is hardly the case. Cancer can be fought with things such as chemotherapy. If detected in the early stages, it is possible to remove the primary tumor before it spreads further. But the minute it begins to spread, the patient will begin experience sickness and in the worst cases death.

It takes a while for growth to start spreading. This is because it takes some effort to be able to infect the healthy cells. The cancer cells create their way by destroying the protein matrix by the use of enzymes. They also are opposed to floating out of a tissue and usually crawl their way around. The force they use to move around is much different than the force used by normal cells.

Of course, the idea of growth spreading to different parts of the body is disturbing. However, it does not actually happen as easily as you would think. Different kinds of growth have different chances of actually spreading to other parts. They evaluate each kind and treat the patients accordingly. The further along in stages the growth is, the higher the chances of spreading.

For tumor cells, they have two main ways in which they can move around. They can use the blood vessels going to the tumor or the lymphatic system. The lymphatic system is easier as they go on to form lymph nodes that are taken out and studied to determine the level of tumor after surgery. The bloodstream is a tough place for a tumor cell and chances of survival are very low.

In some cases, the tumor cells go on to align themselves with the cells found in the lining of the blood vessels. These cells are known as endothelial and can contract thus leaving spaces for the tumor cells. They are also unable to detect the invasion of tumor cells as the cells may disguise themselves as lymphatic cells.

When the cells are detached from the primary tumor, the chances of survival may not be very high. However, they may find that they have landed in a different organ. If the organ does provide favorable conditions for the growth of a new tumor, the cells will multiply. This tumor is known as a secondary tumor and is definitely different from the primary tumor.

The fact that the two tumors are different from each other makes it a lot more difficult to try and treat growth. What works on one may not work on the other. For already spread growth, it is best to discuss treatment options with a specialist. For growth that has not spread, however, the best solution is to remove the primary tumor.




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