Breast Cancer-Killer In Silent Mode

How Cancer Develops


Cancer develops from one single cell. Normally, cells are controlled by a variety of in-built safety catches that make sure that each cell grows and behaves as it should.

A cell can become cancerous in a number of ways:

The cell becomes 'switched on' to divide, and does not have a functioning safety catch to stop the process, so the cell can carry on dividing.
The cell becomes unable to recognise damage to DNA (the chemical code for a cell) or does not have the ability to repair any damage, so the cell continues to live with a faulty 'instruction manual'.
The cell can lose its ability to sense neighbouring cells and interact with them normally.

The proteins that normally play a part in controlling these processes may become damaged. This can lead to cells behaving abnormally and multiplying out of control. When cells are dividing too much they can go on to form a lump, a characteristic of many cancers, including breast cancer.

How cancer spreads


The body has two transport systems, the blood and the lymphatic system. The lymphatic system normally helps the body to fight infection. It is made up of a series of nodes (glands) and vessels (tubes) linked throughout the body.

Breast cancer cells can break away from the original lump, move through surrounding tissue, and eventually be carried by the body's transport systems to other parts of the body.

Breast cancer cells can spread to the lymph nodes in the armpit. In fact, involvement of the lymph nodes can be an indication of how likely it is for the cancer to return.

Cancer cells can also be carried in the bloodstream to distant sites in the body. Here they may form new tumours called metastases or 'secondaries'. If breast cancer spreads to another part of the body, cure is no longer possible. However, treatments can control secondary disease, sometimes for a long time.

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