AY Honors/Cancer Awareness/Answer Key

Cancer Awareness

Skill Level

Unknown

Year

Unknown

Version

01.11.2024

Approval authority

Southern New England Conference

1

What is cellular division?

Cell division is the process by which a parent cell divides into two or more cells. Cell division is controlled by growth factors. There are two forms of cell division: Mitosis and Meiosis.

• Mitosis is the process by which one cell divides into two identical cells. The new cells have the same number of chromosomes as the parent cell. This process takes place for ordinary tissue growth.
• Meiosis is the process by which one parent cell divides into four cells, each with half of the chromosomes of the parent cell. These are our sex cells, sperm in males and eggs in females.

Mitosis:

Meiosis:

2

How do cancer cells divide?

Cancer cells are mitosis out of control. These cells have mutated or become “damaged.” They start to divide duplicating the information that is wrong or damaged by the cell. Cancer cells divide a lot quicker than normal cells and with no control.

Cell division:

3

Explain the difference between cancer, tumor cells, carcinoma, and sarcoma.

Cancer can start any place in the body. It starts when cells grow out of control and crowd out normal cells. This makes it hard for the body to work the way it should.

The cells in our bodies all have certain jobs to do. Normal cells divide in an orderly way. They die when they are worn out or damaged, and new cells take their place.

Cancer is when the cells start to grow out of control. The cancer cells keep on growing and making new cells. They crowd out normal cells. This causes problems in the part of the body where the cancer started.

Cancer cells can also spread to other parts of the body. For instance, cancer cells in the lung can travel to the bones and grow there. When cancer cells spread, it’s called metastasis. When lung cancer spreads to the bones, it’s still called lung cancer. To doctors, the cancer cells in the bones look just like the ones from the lung. It’s not called bone cancer unless it started in the bones.

There are many types of cancer. It’s not just one disease. Cancer can start in the lungs, breast, colon, or even in the blood. Cancers are alike in some ways, but they are different in the ways they grow and spread. Most cancers form a lump called a tumor or a growth. But not all lumps are cancer. Doctors take out a piece of the lump and look at it to find out if it’s cancer. Lumps that are not cancer are called benign. Lumps that are cancer are called malignant.

There are some cancers, like leukemia (cancer of the blood), that don’t form tumors. They grow in the blood cells or other cells of the body.

Cancer	Tumor	Carcinoma	Sarcoma
Cancer is a term for diseases in which abnormal cells divide without control and can invade nearby tissues. Cancer cells can also spread to other parts of the body through the blood and lymph systems.	Tumor cells can be benign (not cancer) or malignant (cancer). They are also known as neoplasm.	Carinoma is a cancer that begins in the skin or in tissues that line or cover internal organs.	Sarcoma is a cancer that begins in bone, cartilage, fat, muscle, blood vessels, or other connective or supportive tissue.

4

Name the branch of science that studies cancer.

The branch of science dedicated to the study of cancer is known as Oncology.

5

How is cancer diagnosed?

Cancer can be diagnosed in a variety of ways. When a person is having symptoms and visits the doctor, he/she can order certain tests that can determine if the person has or does not have cancer. An expert is required for the diagnosis and they do this by collecting samples of tissues and looking at them under the microscope. They can compare to normal cells and determine if the person has or does not have cancer.

6

Draw a diagram of the most common cancers in children, men, and women. You can draw a bar graph, a Venn diagram, a pie chart or whatever form you choose to compare your findings.

Children	Women	Men
Leukemia Brain and other central nervous system tumors Lymphoma (Hodgkin's & non-Hodgkin) Neuroblastoma Wilms' tumor	Breast Cancer Lung Cancer Colorectal Cancer Uterine Cancer Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma	Prostate Cancer Lung Cancer Colorectal Cancer Bladder Cancer Skin Cancer (Melanoma)

7

List and describe at least two ways cancer is treated.

Surgery: Many people with cancer have surgery, especially if the cancer seems to be contained in one area (localized). Surgery may be used to remove it along with any nearby tissue that might contain cancer cells.

Radiation: Like surgery, radiation therapy is used mostly to treat localized cancers – those contained in one area. Radiation destroys cancer cells or damages them so they can’t grow. It can be used alone or along with surgery or chemotherapy. More than half of all people with cancer get radiation at some point. Radiation is given 2 ways: either high-energy rays are aimed from a machine (external radiation) or implants are put into the body near the tumor.

Chemotherapy: Chemotherapy, or chemo, is a treatment with strong drugs that are most often given by mouth or by injection. In most cases, more than one chemo drug is used. Unlike radiation therapy or surgery, chemo drugs can treat cancers that have spread throughout the body because they travel through the bloodstream. It’s given for different reasons, depending on the type of cancer and its stage. Chemo is given in cycles, each followed by a rest period. A cycle might be one dose followed by days or weeks without treatment. The rest period gives the body’s normal cells time to recover. Chemo cycles are set up in other ways, too. Some drugs work best when they’re given a few days in a row, or every other day, followed by a time of rest.

Alternative treatments: We call these “alternative” because they are used instead of proven medical treatments. You may not hear about these treatments from your doctor or cancer team, but others may talk about things like traditional Chinese medicine, acupuncture, or machines that are supposed to find or cure cancer. Some methods take a lot of time and cost a lot of money, such as strict diets or travel to another country for special treatments. Others are fairly cheap and easy to use, like vitamins, herbs, or homeopathic remedies.

Complementary and alternative methods are often appealing because they use your own body, your own mind, or things found in nature. Some even promise wellness using a way that sounds simple, wholesome, and without side effects – something your doctor can’t offer. Another plus is that these are things that you, and only you, choose to do.

Many of these methods almost never cause physical harm, while others can be dangerous and have even caused deaths. But by definition, complementary and alternative methods that claim to cure cancer are nearly all unproven – methods that are well-proven to safely fight cancer tend to be adopted into mainstream medicine fairly quickly. Still, there are methods that have been studied and shown to help a person feel better during cancer treatment.

8

List three ways the environment can affect or trigger cancer in a person.

• Smoking as well as being exposed to secondhand smoke on a regular basis has been shown to increase the risk of getting lung cancer.
• Studies showed that physical activity is associated with lower risk of various types of cancer, including breast and colon cancer.
• The association between post-menopausal hormone use and higher risk of breast cancer was uncovered.
• Studies have shown an association between being overweight or obese and 10 different kinds of cancer.

9

List three things you can do to decrease your chance of getting cancer.

Leading a healthy lifestyle goes a long way to help your body fight off diseases. Not using tobacco, alcohol, or drugs, getting adequate exercise and rest, eating a healthy diet with lots of fruits, vegetables, and grains and maintaining a healthy weight makes a difference in reducing your risk of getting cancer.

10

A diagnosis of cancer does not automatically mean death due to a better understanding of the disease and improved treatments. Use your creativity to illustrate one of the following Bible Passages. Memorize one other passage.

10a

Isaiah 41:10

Be not dismayed, for I am your God.

I will strengthen you,
Yes, I will help you,

I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.’

— Isaiah 41:10 (NKJV)

10b

Proverbs 4:20-22

My son, give attention to my words;

Incline your ear to my sayings.
Do not let them depart from your eyes;
Keep them in the midst of your heart;
For they are life to those who find them,

And health to all their flesh.
— Proverbs 4:20-22 (NKJV)

10c

James 5:16

Confess your trespasses to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much.
— James 5:16 (NKJV)

10d

Psalm 46:1 & 2

God is our refuge and strength,

A very present help in trouble.
Therefore we will not fear,
Even though the earth be removed,

And though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea;
— Psalm 46:1 & 2 (NIV)

10e

Isaiah 40:29-31

He gives power to the weak,

And to those who have no might He increases strength.
Even the youths shall faint and be weary,
And the young men shall utterly fall,
But those who wait on the Lord
Shall renew their strength;
They shall mount up with wings like eagles,
They shall run and not be weary,

They shall walk and not faint.
— Isaiah 40:29-31 (NKJV)

10f

Psalm 27:14

Wait on the Lord;

Be of good courage,
And He shall strengthen your heart;

Wait, I say, on the Lord!
— Psalm 27:14 (NKJV)

11

Show your support for someone with cancer by doing the following:

11a

Put together a care basket for someone with cancer or to drop off at a cancer treatment center or hospital.

11b

Raise cancer awareness at your church, school or community by:

i

participating from a walkathon

ii

posting flyers around the community

iii

developing an AY program or devotional

iv

any other creative form of awareness

11c

Offer to help with a chore or task for the person or family. For example: bring lunch every day (check for dietary restrictions), help with a specific house chore, collecting the mail, walking their pet(s), etc.

11d

Become an effective point person.

References

• American Cancer Society
• Types of childhood cancers
• Difference between a tumor cancer and carcinoma
• Most common cancers in men

The patch can be ordered from the Southern New England Conference online store.