In the simple arithmetic of life, a tissue grows if cells divide more frequently than they die, whereas one in which cell death is more frequent than cell division shrinks. This arithmetic, trivial as it seems, is at the heart…
Why Is Metabolism Important to an Understanding of Cancer? At its heart, cancer is a disease of abnormal proliferation. Proliferation represents a distinct metabolic challenge: cells must replicate all of their proteins, lipids, and nucleic acids to generate a daughter…
What Is Cell Growth? Cell growth is the process by which cells accumulate mass and increase in physical size. On average, dividing animal cells are approximately 10 to 20 μm in diameter. Terminally differentiated cells have a wide range of…
Basic Principles of Cell Cycle Progression The essential function of cell cycle control is the regulated duplication of the cells’ genetic blueprint and the division of this genetic material such that one copy is provided to each daughter cell following…
∗ Disclaimer: Max S. Wicha has financial holdings and is a scientific adviser for OncoMed Pharmaceuticals, is a scientific adviser for Veristem, and has research support from Dompe. Accumulating evidence suggests that most if not all tumors are maintained by…
The study of many different organisms has contributed to our understanding of cancer at the molecular, cellular, and organismal levels. Considerable effort is focused on the rational design and use of mouse models, including spatially and temporally controlled genetic modifications…
The molecular pathogenesis of human cancer is a complex process that often requires the cooperation of genetic mutations within many cellular pathways that ultimately lead to tumorigenesis. Simple model organisms with conserved genes and developmental pathways offer systems with which…
Introduction to Cancer and the Environment Environment, Genetics, and Cancer Overall human cancer risk is determined by complex interactions between host genetics and environmental exposures. On exposure to a cancer-causing agent, a cascade of events is set into motion that…
Overview of Cancer and Infectious Agents Infectious agents are second only to tobacco use as a potentially preventable cause of cancer in humans. Estimates vary between 15% and 30% as to the percentage of cancers worldwide that are associated with…
It has been known for decades that genetic alterations are a fundamental driving force in the initiation and progression of human cancers. It is also now apparent, through a more recent and growing body of work, that epigenetic changes may…