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Cancer

Cancer

Cancer (medical term: malignant neoplasm) is a class of diseases in which a group of cells display uncontrolled growth (division beyond the normal limits), invasion (intrusion on and destruction of adjacent tissues), and sometimes metastasis (spread to other locations in the body via lymph or blood...
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Lung cancer

Lung cancer is a disease of uncontrolled cell growth in tissues of the lung. This growth may lead to metastasis, which is the invasion of adjacent tissue and infiltration beyond the lungs. The vast majority of primary lung cancers are carcinomas of...

Leukemia

Leukemia (British English: leukaemia) (Greek leukos λευκός, "white"; aima αίμα, "blood") is a cancer of the blood or bone marrow and is characterized by an abnormal proliferation (production by multiplication) of blood cells, usually white blood...

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Brain tumor

The brain tumor is an abnormal growth of cells within the brain or inside the skull, which can be cancerous or non-cancerous (benign). It is defined as any intracranial tumor created by abnormal and uncontrolled cell division, normally either in the...

Kaposi's sarcoma

A malignant neoplasm characterized by a vascular proliferation which usually contains blunt endothelial cells. Erythrocyte extravasation and hemosiderin deposition are frequently present. The most frequent site of involvement is the skin; however it...

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Cervical cancer

Cervical cancer is malignant neoplasm of the cervix uteri or cervical area. It may present with vaginal bleeding but symptoms may be absent until the cancer is in its advanced stages. Treatment consists of surgery (including local excision) in early...

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Breast cancer

Breast cancer is a cancer that starts in the breast, usually in the inner lining of the milk ducts or lobules. There are different types of breast cancer, with different stages (spread), aggressiveness, and genetic makeup. With best treatment, 10...

Non-Hodgkin lymphoma

Distinct from Hodgkin lymphoma both morphologically and biologically, Non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL) is characterized by the absence of Reed-Sternberg cells, can occur at any age, and usually presents as a localized or generalized lymphadenopathy...

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Lymphoma

Lymphoma is a cancer that begins in the lymphocytes of the immune system and presents as a solid tumor of lymphoid cells. They often originate like balls in lymph nodes, presenting as an enlargement of the node (a tumor). Lymphomas are closely...

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Prostate cancer

Prostate cancer is a form of cancer that develops in the prostate, a gland in the male reproductive system. The cancer cells may metastasize (spread) from the prostate to other parts of the body, particularly the bones and lymph nodes. Prostate...

Thyroid cancer

Thyroid neoplasm or thyroid cancer usually refers to any of four kinds of malignant tumors of the thyroid gland: papillary, follicular, medullary or anaplastic. Most patients are 25 to 65 years of age when first diagnosed; women are more affected...

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Bladder cancer

Bladder cancer refers to any of several types of malignant growths of the urinary bladder. It is a disease in which abnormal cells multiply without control in the bladder. The bladder is a hollow, muscular organ that stores urine; it is located in...

Colorectal cancer

Colorectal cancer, also called colon cancer or large bowel cancer, includes cancerous growths in the colon, rectum and appendix. With 655,000 deaths worldwide per year, it is the third most common form of cancer and the third leading cause of cancer...

Hepatocellular carcinoma

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC, also called malignant hepatoma) is a primary malignancy (cancer) of the liver. Most cases of HCC are secondary to either a viral hepatitide infection (hepatitis B or C) or cirrhosis (alcoholism being the most common...

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Esophageal cancer

Esophageal cancer is malignancy of the esophagus. There are various subtypes, primarily squamous cell cancer and adenocarcinoma. Squamous cell cancer arises from the cells that line the upper part of the esophagus. Adenocarcinoma arises from...

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Stomach cancer

Stomach or gastric cancer can develop in any part of the stomach and may spread throughout the stomach and to other organs; particularly the esophagus, lungs and the liver. Stomach cancer causes about 800,000 deaths worldwide per year. Stomach...

Liver cancer

Hepatic tumors are tumors or growths on or in the liver (medical terms pertaining to the liver often start in hepato- or hepatic from the Greek word for liver, hepar). These growths can be benign or malignant (cancerous). They may be discovered on...

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Pheochromocytoma

A phaeochromocytoma (PCC) or pheochromocytoma, is a neuroendocrine tumor of the medulla of the adrenal glands (originating in the chromaffin cells), or extra-adrenal chromaffin tissue that failed to involute after birth and secretes excessive...

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Sarcoma

A sarcoma (from the Greek 'sarx' meaning "flesh") is a cancer of the connective tissue (bone, cartilage, fat) resulting in mesoderm proliferation. This is in contrast to carcinomas, which are of epithelial origin (breast, colon, pancreas, and others...

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Multiple myeloma

Multiple myeloma (from myelo-, bone marrow), also known as MM, myeloma, plasma cell myeloma, or as Kahler's disease (after Otto Kahler) is a cancer of the white blood cells known as plasma cells. A type of B cell, plasma cells are a crucial part of...

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Carcinoma

A carcinoma is any malignant cancer that arises from epithelial cells. Carcinomas invade surrounding tissues and organs and may metastasize, or spread, to lymph nodes and other sites. Carcinoma in situ (CIS) is a pre-malignant condition, in which...

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Testicular cancer

Testicular cancer is cancer that develops in the testicles, a part of the male reproductive system. In the United States, between 7,500 and 8,000 diagnoses of testicular cancer are made each year. Over his lifetime, a man's risk of testicular cancer...

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Mesothelioma

Mesothelioma is a form of cancer that is almost always caused by exposure to asbestos. In this disease, malignant cells develop in the mesothelium, a protective lining that covers most of the body's internal organs. Its most common site is the...

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Pancreatic cancer

Pancreatic cancer is a malignant neoplasm of the pancreas. Each year in the United States, about 42,470 individuals are diagnosed with this condition and 35,240 die from the disease. The prognosis is relatively poor but has improved; the three-year...

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Burkitt's lymphoma

Burkitt lymphoma (or "Burkitt's tumor", or "Malignant lymphoma, Burkitt's type") is a cancer of the lymphatic system (in particular, B lymphocytes). It is named after Denis Parsons Burkitt, a surgeon who first described the disease in 1956 while...

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Cancer of the larynx

Laryngeal cancer may also be called cancer of the larynx or laryngeal carcinoma. Most laryngeal cancers are squamous cell carcinomas, reflecting their origin from the squamous cells which form the majority of the laryngeal epithelium. Cancer can...

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Uterine cancer

The term uterine cancer may refer to any of several different types of cancer which occur in the uterus, namely:

Endometrial cancer

Endometrial cancer refers to several types of malignancy which arise from the endometrium, or lining of the uterus. Endometrial cancers are the most common gynecologic cancers in the United States, with over 35,000 women diagnosed each year in the U...

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Renal cell carcinoma

Renal cell carcinoma (RCC, also known as hypernephroma) is a kidney cancer that originates in the lining of the proximal convoluted tubule, the very small tubes in the kidney that filter the blood and remove waste products. RCC is the most common...

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Oral cancer

Oral cancer or Oral cavity cancer, a subtype of head and neck cancer, is any cancerous tissue growth located in the oral cavity. It may arise as a primary lesion originating in any of the oral tissues, by metastasis from a distant site of origin, or...

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Ovarian cancer

Ovarian cancer is a cancerous growth arising from different parts of the ovary. The most common form of ovarian cancer (≥80%) arises from the outer lining (epithelium) of the ovary.. However, recent evidence shows cells that line the Fallopian tube ...

Chronic lymphocytic leukemia

B-cell chronic lymphocytic leukemia (B-CLL), also known as chronic lymphoid leukemia (CLL), is the most common type of leukemia. Leukemias are abnormal and malignant neoplastic proliferations ("cancers") of the white blood cells (leukocytes). CLL...

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Retinoblastoma

Retinoblastoma (Rb) is a rapidly developing cancer which develops in the cells of the retina, the light detecting tissue of the eye. In the developed world, Rb has one of the best cure rates of all childhood cancers (95-98%), with more than nine out...

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Ewing's sarcoma

Ewing sarcoma is a malignant round-cell tumor. It is a rare disease in which cancer cells are found in the bone or in soft tissue. The most common areas in which it occurs are the pelvis, the femur, the humerus, and the ribs. Because a common...

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Wilms' tumor

Wilms' tumor or nephroblastoma is a tumor of the kidneys that typically occurs in children, rarely in adults. Its common name is an eponym, referring to Dr. Max Wilms, the German surgeon (1867–1918) who first described this kind of tumor....

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Chronic myelogenous leukemia

Chronic myelogenous (or myeloid) leukemia (CML), also known as chronic granulocytic leukemia (CGL), is a form of leukemia characterized by the increased and unregulated growth of predominantly myeloid cells in the bone marrow and the accumulation of...

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Hodgkin's lymphoma

Hodgkin's lymphoma, previously known as Hodgkin's disease, is a type of lymphoma, which is a type of cancer originating from white blood cells called lymphocytes. It was named after Thomas Hodgkin, who first described abnormalities in the lymph...

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Anal cancer

Anal cancer is a type of cancer which arises from the anus, the distal orifice of the gastrointestinal tract. It is a distinct entity from the more common colorectal cancer. The etiology, risk factors, clinical progression, staging, and treatment...

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Glioma

A glioma is a type of tumor that starts in the brain or spine. It is called a glioma because it arises from glial cells. The most common site of gliomas is the brain. Gliomas are classified by cell type, by grade, and by location. Gliomas are named...

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Basal cell carcinoma

Basal cell carcinoma is the most common type of skin cancer. It rarely metastasizes or kills, but it is still considered malignant because it can cause significant destruction and disfigurement by invading surrounding tissues. Statistically,...

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Melanoma

A malignant, usually aggressive tumor composed of atypical, neoplastic melanocytes. Most often, melanomas arise in the skin (cutaneous melanomas) and include the following histologic subtypes: superficial spreading melanoma, nodular melanoma, acral...

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Thymoma

In medicine (oncology), thymoma is a tumor originating from the thymus. It consists of any type of thymic epithelial cell as well as lymphocytes that are usually abundant and probably not neoplastic. Thymoma usually is benign, and frequently...

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Head and neck cancer

The term head and neck cancer refers to a group of biologically similar cancers originating from the upper aerodigestive tract, including the lip, oral cavity (mouth), nasal cavity, paranasal sinuses, pharynx, and larynx. Most head and neck cancers...

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Pituitary adenoma

Pituitary adenomas are tumors that occur in the pituitary gland, and account for about 10% of intracranial neoplasms. They often remain undiagnosed, and small pituitary tumors have an estimated prevalence of 16.7% (14.4% in autopsy studies and 22.5%...

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Ependymoma

Ependymoma is a tumor that arises from the ependyma, a tissue of the central nervous system. Usually, in children the location is intracranial, while in adults it is spinal. The common location of intracranial ependymoma is the fourth ventricle....

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Glioblastoma multiforme

Glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) is the most common and most aggressive type of primary brain tumor in humans, involving glial cells and accounting for 52% of all parenchymal brain tumor cases and 20% of all intracranial tumors. Despite being the most...

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Adrenocortical carcinoma

Adrenocortical carcinoma, also adrenal cortical carcinoma (ACC) and adrenal cortex cancer, is an aggressive cancer originating in the cortex (steroid hormone-producing tissue) of the adrenal gland. Adrenocortical carcinoma is a rare tumor, with...

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Hairy cell leukemia

Hairy cell leukemia is a mature B cell neoplasm. It is usually classified as a sub-type of chronic lymphoid leukemia for convenience. It is uncommon, representing about 2% of all leukemias, or less than a total of 2000 new cases diagnosed each year...

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Surface epithelial-stromal tumor

Surface epithelial-stromal tumors are a class of ovarian neoplasms that may be benign or malignant. Neoplasms in this group are thought to be derived from the ovarian surface epithelium (modified peritoneum) or from ectopic endometrial or Fallopian...

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Germ cell tumor

A germ cell tumor (GCT) is a neoplasm derived from germ cells. Germ cell tumors can be cancerous or non-cancerous tumors. Germ cells normally occur inside the gonads (ovary and testis). Germ cell tumors that originate outside the gonads may be birth...

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Mycosis fungoides

Mycosis fungoides (also known as Alibert-Bazin syndrome or granuloma fungoides), is the most common form of cutaneous T-cell lymphoma. It generally affects the skin, but may progress internally over time. Mycosis fungoides was first described in...

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Cutaneous T Cell lymphoma

Cutaneous T cell lymphoma (CTCL) is a class of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, which is a type of cancer of the immune system. Unlike most non-Hodgkin's lymphomas (which are generally B-cell related), CTCL is caused by a mutation of T cells. The malignant T...

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Neuroblastoma

Neuroblastoma is the most common extracranial solid cancer in childhood and the most common cancer in infancy, with an annual incidence of about 650 new cases per year in the US. Close to 50 percent of neuroblastoma cases occur in children younger...

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Myeloproliferative disease

The myeloproliferative diseases ("MPD"s) are a group of diseases of the bone marrow in which excess cells are produced. They are related to, and may evolve into, myelodysplastic syndrome and acute myeloid leukemia, although the myeloproliferative...

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Desmoplastic small round cell tumor

Desmoplastic small round cell tumor is classified as a soft tissue sarcoma. It is an aggressive and rare tumor that primarily occurs as masses in the abdomen. Other areas affected may include the lymph nodes, the lining of the abdomen, diaphragm,...

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Eye cancer

Eye cancer can affect all parts of the eye, eyelid, and orbit (the tissues around the eye). They can be divided into primary cancer (starts within the eye) and metastatic cancer (from another organ). The two most common cancers that spread to the...

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Pleuropulmonary blastoma

Pleuropulmonary blastoma (PPB) is a rare cancer originating in the lung or pleural cavity. It occurs most often in infants and young children but also has been reported in adults. In a retrospective review of 204 children with lung tumors,...

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Merkel cell cancer

Merkel cell cancer, also called Merkel cell carcinoma, trabecular cancer, Apudoma of skin, or Small cell neuroepithelial tumor of the skin, is a rare and highly aggressive cancer where malignant cancer cells develop on or just beneath the skin and...

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Macroglobulinemia

Macroglobulinemia is the presence of increased levels of macroglobulins in the circulating blood. A plasma cell dyscrasia resembling leukemia with cells of lymphocytic, plasmacytic, or intermediate morphology, which secrete an immunoglobulin M...

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Uveal melanoma

Uveal melanoma is a cancer (melanoma) of the eye involving the iris, ciliary body, or choroid (collectively referred to as the uvea). Tumors arise from the pigment cells (melanocytes) that reside within the uvea giving color to the eye. These...

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Pinealoma

Pinealoma is a tumor of the pineal gland. The pineal gland produces the hormone melatonin which plays a role in regulating circadian rhythms. A pinealoma may disrupt production of this hormone, and insomnia may result. Frequently, paralysis of...

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