National Cancer Week, which is held every year between 1 and 7 April, was announced in our country to raise public awareness about cancer. Thus, increasing public awareness about; screening methods, correct lifestyle, diagnosis, and treatment possibilities.
Cancer, one of the most common diseases of modern times, is a disease in which certain cells divide uncontrollably and spread to other parts of the body. (one). The two main characteristics of cancer cells are uncontrolled cell division and the ability to invade other tissues. Genetic and epigenetic changes play an essential role in these processes. (2-4)
Patients diagnosed with cancer are increasing day by day around the world. In industrialized countries, the number of patients diagnosed at some point in their lives is much more severe (5). According to the 2020 data of the World Health Organization, 20 million new cancer cases were diagnosed annually on a global basis, while 10 million deaths occurred due to the disease. Approximately 162 thousand people in Turkey are diagnosed with cancer annually (6). The most common cancers in 2020 are breast, lung, colon and rectum, prostate, skin, and stomach cancers (7).
Due to the lack of awareness among the public about cancer, the interest in screening methods is not at the desired level. The late manifestations of some types of cancer due to their course adversely affect the chance of treatment. Current cancer treatments include surgery, radiation, and chemotherapeutic drugs. The development of molecular methods in recent years has helped to apply the right targeted therapies by better defining the diagnosis and prognosis of patients (8-9).
References:
1.
Roy
P, Saikia B. Cancer and cure: A critical analysis. Indian J Cancer 2016;
53:441-2.
2.
Bashyam
MD, et al. The Yin and Yang of cancer genes. Gene (704) 2019, Pages 121-133
3.
Potapova
TA, Zhu J, Li R: Aneuploidy and chromosomal instability: a vicious cycle
driving cellular evolution and cancer genome chaos. Cancer Metast Rev 2013; 32:
377-389.
4.
Macaluso
M, Paggi MG, Giordano A: Genetic and epigenetic alterations as hallmarks of the
intricate road to cancer. Oncogene 2003; 22: 6472-6478.
5.
Ahmad
AS, et al. Trends in the lifetime risk of developing cancer in Great Britain:
comparison of risk for those born from 1930 to 1960. Br. J. Cancer, 112 (2015),
pp. 943-947
6. https://www.titck.gov.tr/haber/4-subat-dunya-kanser-gunu-bilgilendirme-27122018173832
7.
https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/cancer
8.
“Cancer
drugs are getting better and dearer”. The Economist. 4 May 2017. Retrieved
19 May 2017.
9.
https://sbu.saglik.gov.tr/Ekutuphane/kitaplar/kanser.pdf