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Esophageal Cancer
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Understanding the Cancer Process
Cancer is a disease that affects cells, the body's basic unit of life. To understand any type of cancer, it is helpful to know about normal cells and what happens when they become cancerous.
The body is made up of many types of cells. Normally, cells grow, divide, and produce more cells when they are needed. This process keeps the body healthy and functioning properly. Sometimes, however, cells keep dividing when new cells are not needed. The mass of extra cells forms a growth or * tumor. Tumors can be benign or malignant.
- Benign tumors are not cancer. They usually can be removed and, in most cases, they do not come back. Cells in benign tumors do not spread to other parts of the body. Most important, benign tumors are rarely a threat to life.
- Malignant tumors are cancer. Cells in malignant tumors are abnormal and divide without control or order. These cancer cells can invade and destroy the tissue around them. Cancer cells can also break away from a malignant tumor and enter the bloodstream or * lymphatic system (the tissues and organs that produce, store, and carry white blood cells that fight infection and other diseases). This process, called * metastasis, is how cancer spreads from the original (primary) tumor to form new (secondary) tumors in other parts of the body.
Cancer that begins in the esophagus, also called * esophageal cancer, is divided into two major types, * squamous cell carcinoma and * adenocarcinoma, depending on the type of cells that are malignant. Squamous cell carcinomas arise in squamous cells that line the esophagus. These cancers usually occur in the upper and middle part of the esophagus. Adenocarcinomas usually develop in the glandular tissue in the lower part of the esophagus. The treatment is similar for both types of esophageal cancer.
If the cancer spreads outside the esophagus, it often goes to the * lymph nodes first. Lymph nodes are small, bean shaped structures that are part of the body's immune system. Esophageal cancer can also spread to almost any other part of the body, including the liver, lungs, brain, and bones.
Definitions For This Page - In Alphabetical Order
* Adenocarcinoma
Pronounced - AD-in-o-kar-sin-O-ma
Cancer that begins in cells that line certain internal organs and that have glandular (secretory) properties.
* Esophageal
Pronounced - eh-SOF-a-JEE-al
Having to do with the esophagus, the muscular tube through which food passes from the throat to the stomach.
* Lymph Nodes
Pronounced - limf node
A rounded mass of lymphatic tissue that is surrounded by a capsule of connective tissue. Lymph nodes filter lymph (lymphatic fluid), and they store lymphocytes (white blood cells). They are located along lymphatic vessels. Also called a lymph gland.
* Lymphatic System
Pronounced - lim-FAT-ik SIS-tem
The tissues and organs that produce, store, and carry white blood cells that fight infections and other diseases. This system includes the bone marrow, spleen, thymus, lymph nodes, and lymphatic vessels (a network of thin tubes that carry lymph and white blood cells). Lymphatic vessels branch, like blood vessels, into all the tissues of the body.
* Metastasis
Pronounced - meh-TAS-ta-sis
The spread of cancer from one part of the body to another. A tumor formed from cells that have spread is called a secondary tumor, a metastatic tumor, or a metastasis. The secondary tumor contains cells that are like those in the original (primary) tumor. The plural form of metastasis is metastases (pronounced - meh-TAS-ta-seez).
* Squamous Cell Carcinoma
Pronounced - SKWAY-mus sel kar-sin-O-ma
Cancer that begins in squamous cells, which are thin, flat cells that look like fish scales. Squamous cells are found in the tissue that forms the surface of the skin, the lining of the hollow organs of the body, and the passages of the respiratory and digestive tracts. Also called epidermoid carcinoma.
* Tumor
Pronounced - TOO-mer
An abnormal mass of tissue that results from excessive cell division. Tumors perform no useful body function. They may be benign (not cancerous) or malignant (cancerous).
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References:
www.cancer.gov
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