Healthy Perspectives - Winter 2017 - 5

How Cancer Starts
B
etween friends, family, social media and the news,
you're more informed than ever about cancer,
including the causes behind it. Or are you? Make
sure you have the facts.

TRUE OR FALSE

Cancer is a single disease with many symptoms.
False. "Cancer is not one disease," says Yaolin Zhou, MD,
a molecular genetic pathologist and ambassador with the
United States and Canadian Academy of Pathology. "It's
many, many different types of diseases under one umbrella."
There are more than 100 types of cancer, according to the
National Cancer Institute. Most are named for the part of the
body affected, such as breast cancer or lung cancer.
TRUE OR FALSE

Cancer is always caused by genetics.
True. Cancer is caused by genetic changes that alter the
way cells grow and divide.
Those genetic changes can be inherited from our parents,
but they could also be caused by environmental factors such
as smoking, radiation and exposure to ultraviolet rays.

TRUE OR FALSE

The most comprehensive treatment plan
includes surgery, radiation and chemotherapy.
False. Because every cancer is different, treatment
plans vary.
Some cancers are treated with surgery then radiation,
while in other cases radiation is performed first. Other cancers
are treated with chemotherapy or immunotherapy. Still others
require some combination of the above. Only you and your
care team can decide what's right for you. 1

Welcome to the team!
Join us in welcoming visiting physician specialist Jose
Ruades, M.D.! He joins nurse practitioner Kelly Taunton
and the MMH chemotherapy and infusion services team
and provides consultation and treatment through the
Meeker Memorial Specialty Clinics.

TRUE OR FALSE

Cancer is marked by the presence of a tumor.
False. Not all tumors are cancerous. Many benign tumors
don't cause any problems at all. And some cancers, such as
leukemia and lymphoma, don't result in tumors.
TRUE OR FALSE

©GETTY IMAGES

Breast cancer that metastasizes (spreads)
to the lung is still called breast cancer.
True. Cancer that has spread to other parts of the body is
still the original cancer at the cellular level.
"It's kind of like if you move," Zhou says. "You're still the
same person. You just live in a different place now."

Jose Ignacio Ruades
Ninfea, M.D.
Hematology/Oncology
MMH Specialty Clinic
Visiting Physician Specialist

Kelly Taunton, APRN, NP-C
Nurse Practitioner
Willmar Regional
Cancer Center

Information about specialists at Willmar Regional Cancer
Center can be found at willmarmedicalservices.com.
For scheduling and more information about chemotherapy and infusion services, call MMH Specialty Clinics
at 320-693-4590.

FOLLOW the National Society of Genetic Counselors for insight on the benefits of genetic counseling at @GeneticCouns

http://www.willmarmedicalservices.com

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Healthy Perspectives - Winter 2017