Cancer Health Article

SCREENING AND EARLY DETECTION

Mammography has been shown to reduce breast cancer mortality among women over the age of fifty, and Pap smear screening has dramatically reduced mortality from cervical cancer. In addition, there is growing evidence that fecal occult blood testing and endoscopic screening significantly reduce mortality from colorectal cancer. Identification of mutations is becoming an important tool for identifying individuals at high risk of various cancers. For instance, DNA repair-gene mutations (e.g., MSH2, PMS1) have been associated with a higher risk of colon cancer, as have mutations in the tumor suppressor genes BRCA1 and BRCA2 in breast cancer. Although it is believed that inherited risk for cancer accounts for a small proportion of total cancer cases each year, identifying this risk may help researchers determine how cancer develops and progresses, and may provide a tool for targeting prevention or treatment strategies.

Prognosis is dependent on the type of cancer diagnosed, the stage of the disease at the time of diagnosis, and the effectiveness of currently available therapy. Surgery, radiation, chemotherapy, hormonal therapy, and immunologic therapy form the basis of modern cancer treatment. Surgery is generally the treatment of choice for localized tumors, although radiation often is an appropriate alternative. Lasers are being used for small noninvasive tumors of the skin, cervix, and throat. Radiation therapy is often recommended as primary therapy (e.g., for Hodgkin's disease and early stage tumors of the head and neck), and is an important adjunct to lumpectomy for the treatment of breast cancer. Radiation therapy also plays an important role in the symptomatic management of patients with advanced cancer (e.g., bone or brain metastases). In contrast to surgery and radiation, chemotherapy is a systemic, rather than local, therapy, because the drugs are distributed throughout the body. Chemotherapy generally is required to treat advanced cancers that are not amenable to surgical removal or radiation therapy. Chemotherapy is often used after surgery (adjuvant therapy) to reduce the risk of relapse. The most common indication for adjuvant chemotherapy is following surgery for localized breast or colorectal cancer.

Hormone therapy represents a very important category of cancer treatment for breast cancer (tamoxifen and raloxifene) and prostate (androgen blockers) cancer. In addition, immunotherapy (also called biologic therapy) is being used to boost the immune system to fight cancer cells. Monoclonal antibodies are one type of immunotherapy that can be used to fight specific cancer cells or to carry chemotherapeutic agents to a tumor. Interferon is another immunotherapy that has shown promise in slowing the growth of tumors. Each of these treatments has advantages and disadvantages, and should be discussed with a physician.

CANCER IN DEVELOPING COUNTRIES

Cancer trends are of great concern to the public health community. As developing countries become more industrialized, incidence and mortality rates for cancers of the breast, colon, rectum, and prostate begin to rise. Also, smoking is increasing worldwide—along with lung cancer incidence and mortality rates. Liver cancer shows the same trends as lung cancer, but for a different reason. Infection with the hepatitis B or C viruses is a major risk factor for liver cancer. In some countries, where a vaccine for hepatitis B is widely used to vaccinate infants, liver cancer incidence in later life has declined; however, incidence rates in developing countries, where vaccination is not widely available, appear to be increasing. Another virus, the human papillomavirus (HPV), is an important risk factor for cervical cancer. Cervical cancer and HPV are more common in equatorial countries (e.g., in Latin America, sub-Saharan Africa, and Southeast Asia) and less common in countries in northern latitudes. Screening and treatment for early stages of cervical cancer have made significant inroads for reducing the incidence and mortality of this disease.

HOWARD L. PARNES

DARRELL ANDERSON

(SEE ALSO: Breast Cancer; Carcinogen; Cervical Cancer; Colorectal Cancer; Environmental Determinants of Health; Environmental Tobacco Smoke; Genetics and Health; Geography of Disease; Geriatrics; Incidence and Prevalence; Lung Cancer; Melanoma; Mortality Rates; Nutrition; Occupational Safety and Health; Oral Cancer; Ovarian Cancer; Prevention; Preventive Health Behavior; Prostate Cancer; Screening; Skin Cancer)