Cancer is a disease that occurs mainly in fully-grown adults. The disease originates out of an excessive and "out-of-control" growth caused by abnormal cells. This is true in every type of cancer, which is why you may have heard of a “tumor” when dealing with the issue of cancer.

A tumor is the actual growth that occurs when cancer begins in the body. Not all tumors are cancerous, and not all forms of cancers involve tumors, however.

Cancer comes in many different forms, and is always characterized by damaged DNA (which are the cell strands that determine our identity and individuality). You may have heard of DNA in movies.  Most cancers, and DNA damage, are caused by exposure to something harmful in the environment like UV rays and other forms of radiation, or cigarette smoke, but cancer and damaged DNA can also be inherited through family genes.

Who Gets Cancer?
Cancer affects mostly adults, and according to the American Cancer Society, over 1 million people get cancer in some form each year; roughly only 1% of those cases are teenagers. Although cancer occurs most often in people 55 years or older, with 77% of the cases, people at all ages can get cancer, including babies, children, teenagers and young adults. Millions of people have been cured completely of their cancer, and are living healthy lives; still millions of other people are living with cancer, many for a number of years. The American Cancer Society also provided and astounding piece of information which states that one out of two American men will get some type of cancer in their lifetime. One out of three American women will as well.

What are the Most Common Types of Cancer?
In women, breast cancer remains the most prevalent.  Men are at a constant risk to prostate cancer. Everyone is at risk to skin cancer, which is usually caused by excessive direct exposure to direct sunlight.  Tobacco in all forms is deadly. Whether it is smoked with cigarettes, cigars, or pipes, or chewed by ball players, or even if it is breathed as second-hand smoke, tobacco causes cancer in the lung or mouth.

What do we Know About Avoiding or Preventing Cancer?
This is an ongoing area of research, and we have still not determined all the factors that contribute to cancer.  When cancer is related to family genes, prevention is uncontrollable. In preventing the new onset of cancer in yourself, or anyone else, however, we do know many things that can be de done to help prevent the disease. The four most important factors concern drugs and alcohol, sunlight, diet and exercise. Drugs (especially tobacco) and alcohol have been linked to cancer, so complete avoidance of any drugs or alcohol can be one way to help lower your chances of getting the disease. Sunlight is a risk factor, so it is important to protect your skin with shade, clothing or sunscreen whenever possible from direct sunlight.  A healthy diet and constant exercise have also proved to be extremely important factors in the fight to reduce cancer risk.  A combination of these four areas, and an overall healthy lifestyle, is the best way that we know of to protect against cancer. By the age of 20 you should begin having regular tests, but it is never too early to start learning about this deadly, yet sometimes preventable disease.

How is Cancer Treated?
The three most common treatment procedures are surgery, radiation and chemotherapy.