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Background
Cancer is the uncontrolled multiplication of our body’s cells. In some cases, the uncontrolled division of cells causes a mass of cells known as a tumour to form. Leukaemia (see entry Leukaemia and other Allied Blood disorders), is a type of cancer where a tumour does not form.
It is important to note that tumours can be malignant (cancerous) and benign (non-cancerous). Benign tumours can sometimes causes problems if they are large and push on surrounding tissues or organs. Malignant tumours have the ability to metastasise, meaning that cancer cells can break off and are able to move from their original location (primary cancer) through the blood and lymph to other areas where a new tumour may form (secondary cancer). Many specific conditions come under the term cancer with over 200 different types.
Cancer is a life-threatening condition, however, the outlook for patients has been greatly altered in recent years due to better detection and treatments.
