Cancer in Women

Posted on April 13, 2007 in Health by byronb

Cancer is not just one single disease. It is a group of various diseases taken together. These diseases have some common factors. Cells get affected due to cancer. It is these cells that are the basic unit in the human body. Cells grow when they are needed by the body. However, sometimes cells grow without any need arising for them in the body. These cells form a mass of tissue. This is called a tumor. When this tumor is malignant it is called as cancer.

Organs that are present near the tumor get damaged by these cancer cells. Sometimes, the cancer cells move away from the tumor. They can enter the lymphatic system or the bloodstream. It is through this process that the spread of cancer takes place. This process is called metastasis. The name of the particular type of cancer is derived from the part of the body that is affected. The cancer of uterus, called uterine cancer, starts from the endometrium. Uterine sarcoma starts from the uterine muscle.  This is just one type of cancer which affects the uterus. Cancer affects different parts of the body.

In case of cancer in women, there has been a controversy raging since sometime. A connection has been suggested between level of estrogen and breast cancer. This connection suggests that oral contraceptives and women can be linked. There are two types of oral contraceptives that are available in the United States. The oral contraceptive that is usually prescribed has a synthetic version of the natural female hormones.  The other type of oral contraceptive has progestogen. Medical research has suggested that cancer occurring in the reproductive organs of females may depend on the natural sex hormones. There haven’t been consistent results to establish a link between oral contraceptives and cancer.

Nutrition is important in case of cancer. Eating well will lead to more energy being produced. The rebuilding of normal tissues will take place. And strength will be recovered faster. Usually, women find it very difficult to eat properly in the course of their treatment. They might experience loss of appetite. Vomiting and nausea are other side effects that are commonly experienced in the course of the treatment. When women feel tired, they may refuse to eat. Care has to be taken to make sure that proper diet is maintained during the treatment of cancer. Support is available for cancer patients. Prevention is better than cure. So, it is advisable to take preventive measures for cancer.

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