How Does Cancer Start
Even though cancer is one of the most feared diseases of the modern times, the exact reasons that cause it are still not known. The fact that cancer can affect various body parts and also that each type of cancer acts in its own unique manner, has further complicated the answer to the question “How does cancer start?” While many people believe cancer to be a disease caused by some sort of virus, there are others who consider it to be a condition resulting from a combination of 100 different diseases all of which have the same characteristic of rapid growth of abnormal cells.
With cancer emerging as a major health problem across the globe, researchers are desperately trying figure out how does cancer start. What makes the problem more complex is the fact that the causes and conditions that might be responsible for causing cancer in one body part might have no relevance to the cancer caused in some other part of the body. It is also believed that cancer might actually be caused by some inciting agents that get introduced into a body part at precisely the right time and under the right circumstances. This results in changing the way the cells in that part develop naturally as well as how they affect the working of the neighboring cells. As this undisciplined cell behavior continues to be transmitted across generations, the growth of cancer is initiated.
Although many people feel that cancer may be handed over from generation to generation, there is no proof in support of this theory. The reasons for consecutive generations becoming infected with the disease might actually lie in exposure to similar environments or cell damaging substances as otherwise the disease itself cannot be inherited. This eliminates heredity as one of the reasons behind how does cancer start. However, having said this it is always advisable for people with a family history of cancer to be alert and to protective about their health and undergo periodic checkups, specifically so after the age of forty.
To gain an insight into how does cancer start, it is vital to first understand that cancer is basically a disease that originates from the very basic functional unit of the body which are the cells. In a normal healthy adult the cells work according to a code of conduct and they divide, grow, maintain, and even perform a particular function based on this code. A set number of new cells are reproduced by the body every day to replace the dead and damaged cells.
However, cancerous cells do not follow this code of conduct and grow as per their own free will causing an overgrowth of cells that cause damage to various body parts. Moreover, cancerous cells survive for a longer period than the normal cells and also divide more frequently which increases their numbers at a faster pace and then they fight with the healthy cells not only for nutrients, but space as well, resulting in creating a mass of unwanted cells known as tumor.
