Since humans officially declared war on cancer in 1971, more than fifty years have passed. Although we have not been able to bridge the gap of conquering cancer, technological progress has truly helped us find a bridgehead with hope of crossing this hurdle. Immunotherapy is the first glimmer of hope in recent years. Whether it is by suppressing immune checkpoints to allow the immune system, which has been hypnotized by cancer cells, to get back up and work again, or by artificially modifying T cells through genetic engineering to kill specific types of cancer cells, or by developing new therapies for T cell receptors and natural killer (NK) cells, the prospects for cancer treatment are becoming increasingly optimistic.
1.Cancer begins with cell mutation.
Everyone's body consists of hundreds of trillions of cells, which operate normally most of the time. They divide, work and die in an orderly way according to genetic information.
The origin of cancer is often an unexpected change during cell division: gene mutation. When cells divide, DNA will be copied and passed on to the next generation of cells. If an error occurs in this process, it may lead to genetic mutation of the cell.
Mutation itself is not terrible. The human body has a sophisticated repair mechanism, which can repair or guide the mutant cells to self-destruct after most mutations occur. However, when mutations accumulate to a certain extent, especially when they involve key genes that control cell growth, division and death, problems arise. Cancer is the result when these mutations get out of control.
Cancer cells "learn" how to escape apoptosis (programmed cell death) through mutation, and at the same time they begin to divide endlessly. Normal cells have a strict limit on the number of divisions, but cancer cells have broken through this limit and become "immortal" cells.
2. Cancer rises in silence
The development of cancer does not happen overnight. It has gone through many stages from single cell mutation to malignant tumor formation. In the early stage of cancer, it may be just a small abnormal cell aggregation, which may last for years or decades. At this stage, cancer often has no obvious symptoms and will not be found.
As time goes on, cancer cells proliferate, and they are not limited to a certain part, but also spread to other organs through the blood or lymphatic system. This process, called metastasis, is one of the most deadly stages of cancer. Metastatic cancer cells will grow in new organs, destroy normal tissue structure and function, and eventually lead to organ failure and life-threatening.
3. Explanation of the Origin of Cancer by Traditional Chinese Medicine and Western Medicine
From the point of view of western medicine, cancer is caused by gene mutation, which leads to cell function out of control and then produces malignant tumor. Western medicine tries to directly eliminate or inhibit the growth of cancer cells by means of surgery, radiotherapy and chemotherapy. However, the complexity of cancer often makes it impossible to completely eradicate all cancer cells, especially when cancer has metastasized.
Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) explains cancer from a holistic perspective, arguing that the formation of cancer is due to the imbalance of qi and blood, the imbalance of viscera function and the accumulation of dampness and toxin in the body. Traditional Chinese medicine emphasizes that "healthy qi should be kept inside, and evil cannot be done", and holds that when the healthy qi of the human body is insufficient and the immunity decreases, the "evil qi" (including cancer cells) in the body will take advantage of it.
The key point of Chinese medicine in treating cancer is to regulate qi and blood, strengthen the body resistance and eliminate pathogens, enhance human immunity and help the body repair itself through Chinese medicine and acupuncture.
4.What is the cause of cancer?
The occurrence of cancer is often the result of the interaction of internal and external factors. Internal factors refer to genetic factors and natural changes in cells. For example, some cancers have a family genetic tendency, such as breast cancer and ovarian cancer.
External factors include environmental pollution, smoking, improper diet, lack of exercise, mental stress and so on. Long-term exposure to carcinogens (such as tobacco, radiation and some chemicals) will increase the probability of gene mutation, which in turn will increase the risk of cancer.
Studies have shown that about 90% of cancers are related to the external environment and lifestyle. For example, long-term smoking is the main factor leading to lung cancer, and excessive ultraviolet radiation will increase the risk of skin cancer, while a high-fat and high-calorie diet is closely related to colon cancer and breast cancer.
5.Early signs of cancer and the importance of screening
Early detection of cancer is very important for treatment. Early cancer often has no obvious symptoms, but some signals may be potential warnings. For example, long-term persistent cough, abnormal weight loss, persistent fatigue, unexplained skin changes, persistent pain, etc., may be early signs of cancer.
Regular cancer screening can improve the probability of early detection. Common screening methods include mammography (molybdenum target) for breast cancer, cervical smear for cervical cancer and colonoscopy for colon cancer. Early detection means that cancer is still in a local stage, the treatment effect will be better, and the survival rate will be significantly improved.
6.The road to recovery from cancer is hard!
There are various treatment methods for cancer, and surgery is the main means of treating early-stage localized cancer. By removing tumor tissue, the spread of cancer can be effectively controlled. Radiotherapy and chemotherapy are used to kill residual cancer cells and prevent their further spread or recurrence. The most common treatment currently is targeted therapy, which blocks specific molecular pathways in cancer cells, inhibiting their growth and division. Alternatively, immunotherapy activates the patient's own immune system to recognize and attack cancer cells.
In recent years, people have realized that the diversity and complexity of cancer require interdisciplinary collaboration. For example, in the integration of traditional Chinese and Western medicine, the role of traditional Chinese medicine in cancer treatment, especially in postoperative rehabilitation and reducing the side effects of radiotherapy and chemotherapy, has been clinically validated; In modern physics, the use of appropriate molecular mechanisms of heavy ion radiation damage to attack cancer cells has achieved initial success. It has been demonstrated that at the same dose, heavy ions have a killing ability on cancer cells that is 2 to 3 times greater than traditional radiation therapy methods such as X-rays. Moreover, heavy ion radiation therapy can directly cause double strand breaks in tumor cell DNA, resulting in significantly higher biological effects; In biochemical engineering, preliminary verifiable results have been obtained for amino acids and their derivatives 6-DIAZO-5-OXO-L-NORLEUCINE.
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