I wonder if you can imagine a time when this disease is no longer a problem or when a visit to the doctor for some routine tests does not bring the fear that it does at the moment? The problem is we don't fully understand the causes of cancer although there are many things in our life that can trigger it.

Of course many researchers belief that we are in effect born with cancer which is just waiting for something to set if off, but just what is cancer? The main characteristic of cancer is that it starts with a large group of abnormal cells that keep growing and dividing when they reach a certain size; they then invade other cells and repeat the process continuing to spread to other areas of the body in a process called metastasis.

Benign tumors do not normally grow larger, metastasize or threaten the body and organs like malignant (cancerous) tumors do although it is possible for a malignant tumor to have started out as benign. Cancer is an abnormality in the body's cells and can be caused by a number of agents including carcinogens or poisons such as smoke, infectious agents or radiation.

Just to confuse the issue more, it is possible inherit genes that may be pre-disposed to it as well as faulty genetic DNA replication. It would seem that certain people's genetic makeup makes them less prone to contacting the illness even if they are allowing harmful carcinogens into their bodies.

Research into the cause of cancer continues around the globe and is the disease most frequently studied on a regular basis. More knowledge is being acquired about cancer each year. More information is being gathered about all illnesses and why some people are more prone to certain conditions. Knowledge like this could enable more people avoid contracting cancer in the first place.

One of the major causes surrounds food and dietary habits. Your regular diet could be putting you at long term risk from all kinds of diseases. People are generally eating too much of the wrong things such as an excess salt intake, too much saturated fat and certain dairy produce. Studies have shown that there is a connection between dairy produced calcium and prostrate cancer.

Cancer can affect any part of the body from the bones, blood, skin or organs. nowhere is safe from it. Sometimes the disease is only picked up through routine screening. Usually the cancer is at an early stage and a person may have a better chance of being cured. the number of different types of cancer that can be treated has increased dramatically in recent years with so much intensive research being carried out. Advancements in medical techniques mean that cancer in many cases can be treated and often completely cured; it is only a matter of time before a complete cure is discovered.