Cancer: MedlinePlus

Cancer: MedlinePlus

Cancer

Also called: Carcinoma, Malignancy, Neoplasms, Tumor

New on the MedlinePlus Cancer page:

Tumor Marker Tests

08/23/2018 02:26 PM EDT

Source: National Library of Medicine - 

MEDICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA

• Cancer
• Cancer and lymph nodes
• Cancer prevention: take charge of your lifestyle
• Cancer treatment -- early menopause
• Cancer treatment: preventing infection
• Cancer treatments
• CEA blood test
• CSF analysis
• CSF cell count
• Diet and cancer

Related Health Topics

• Cancer Alternative Therapies
• Cancer Chemotherapy
• Cancer Immunotherapy
• Cancer--Living with Cancer
• Radiation Therapy
• Tumors and Pregnancy

National Institutes of Health

The primary NIH organization for research on Cancer is the National Cancer Institute

Other Languages

Find health information in languages other than English on Cancer

NIH MedlinePlus Magazine

• Cancer Moonshot Aims to Double Pace of Research
• CancerSEEK: Blood Test Could Detect Cancer Earlier
• Closer Look at Cancer Imaging Tools
• Finding Better and More Personalized Ways to Diagnose Cancer at NIH
• Translating Music into Hope: Black Eyed Peas' Taboo Talks About His Cancer Battle

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Summary

Cancer begins in your cells, which are the building blocks of your body. Normally, your body forms new cells as you need them, replacing old cells that die. Sometimes this process goes wrong. New cells grow even when you don't need them, and old cells don't die when they should. These extra cells can form a mass called a tumor. Tumors can be benign or malignant. Benign tumors aren't cancer while malignant ones are. Cells from malignant tumors can invade nearby tissues. They can also break away and spread to other parts of the body.

Cancer is not just one disease but many diseases. There are more than 100 different types of cancer. Most cancers are named for where they start. For example, lung cancer starts in the lung, and breast cancer starts in the breast. The spread of cancer from one part of the body to another is called metastasis. Symptoms and treatment depend on the cancer type and how advanced it is. Most treatment plans may include surgery, radiation and/or chemotherapy. Some may involve hormone therapy, immunotherapy or other types of biologic therapy, or stem cell transplantation.

NIH: National Cancer Institute

Start Here

• Cancer (American Academy of Family Physicians)
• Cancer Basics (American Cancer Society)Also in Spanish
• What Is Cancer?  (National Cancer Institute)Also in Spanish

Diagnosis and Tests

• Cancer Screening Overview (PDQ)  (National Cancer Institute)Also in Spanish
• Cancer Staging  (National Cancer Institute)Also in Spanish
• Computed Tomography (CT) Scans and Cancer  (National Cancer Institute)Also in Spanish
• Exams and Test Descriptions (American Cancer Society)
• Fine Needle Aspiration (American Academy of Otolaryngology--Head and Neck Surgery)
• Pathology Reports  (National Cancer Institute)Also in Spanish
• Sentinel Lymph Node Biopsy  (National Cancer Institute)Also in Spanish
• Tumor Grade  (National Cancer Institute)Also in Spanish
•  Tumor Marker Tests  (National Library of Medicine)Also in Spanish
• Tumor Markers  (National Cancer Institute)Also in Spanish
• Understanding Laboratory Tests  (National Cancer Institute)Also in Spanish

Prevention and Risk Factors

• Antioxidants and Cancer Prevention  (National Cancer Institute)Also in Spanish
• Calcium and Cancer Prevention: Strengths and Limits of the Evidence (National Cancer Institute)Also in Spanish
• Cancer Prevention Overview (PDQ)  (National Cancer Institute)Also in Spanish
• Diet Choices to Prevent Cancer (American Academy of Family Physicians)Also in Spanish
• How Is Cancer Risk Measured?  (National Cancer Institute)Also in Spanish
• Risk Factors  (National Cancer Institute)
• Vitamin, Mineral, and Multivitamin Supplements for the Primary Prevention of Cardiovascular Disease and Cancer (U.S. Preventive Services Task Force) - PDF

Treatments and Therapies

• A to Z List of Cancer Drugs (National Cancer Institute)
• Adjuvant Therapy: Treatment to Keep Cancer from Returning(Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research)Also in Spanish
• Angiogenesis Inhibitors  (National Cancer Institute)Also in Spanish
• Biological Therapies for Cancer  (National Cancer Institute)Also in Spanish
• Cancer Alternative Therapies: MedlinePlus Health Topic  (National Library of Medicine)Also in Spanish
• Cancer Surgery: Physically Removing Cancer (Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research)Also in Spanish
• Cancer Treatment Scams (Federal Trade Commission)Also in Spanish
• Hyperthermia in Cancer Treatment  (National Cancer Institute)Also in Spanish
• Lasers in Cancer Treatment  (National Cancer Institute)Also in Spanish
• Managing Cancer Care - Finding Health Care Services  (National Cancer Institute)
• Non-Specific Immunotherapies and Adjuvants (American Cancer Society)
• Pain Control  (National Cancer Institute) - PDF
• Photodynamic Therapy for Cancer  (National Cancer Institute)Also in Spanish
• Targeted Cancer Therapies  (National Cancer Institute)Also in Spanish
• Treatment Option Overview (Carcinoma of Unknown Primary)  (National Cancer Institute)Also in Spanish
• Treatment Option Overview (Extragonadal Germ Cell Tumors)  (National Cancer Institute)Also in Spanish

Living With

• Cancer--Living with Cancer: MedlinePlus Health Topic  (National Library of Medicine)Also in Spanish

Related Issues

• Cancer and Tobacco Use (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)Also in Spanish
• Cancer Causes: Popular Myths about the Causes of Cancer(Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research)
• Cancer Clusters  (National Cancer Institute)Also in Spanish
• Chemicals in Meat Cooked at High Temperatures and Cancer Risk  (National Cancer Institute)Also in Spanish
• Common Cancer Myths and Misconceptions  (National Cancer Institute)
• Cruciferous Vegetables and Cancer Prevention  (National Cancer Institute)Also in Spanish
• Family Caregivers in Cancer (PDQ)  (National Cancer Institute)Also in Spanish
• Fluoridated Water  (National Cancer Institute)Also in Spanish
• Known and Probable Human Carcinogens (American Cancer Society)
• Obesity and Cancer Risk  (National Cancer Institute)Also in Spanish
• Paraneoplastic Syndromes  (National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke)
• Physical Activity and Cancer  (National Cancer Institute)Also in Spanish
• Psychological Stress and Cancer  (National Cancer Institute)Also in Spanish
• Should People With Cancer Get a Flu Shot? (American Cancer Society)
• Tobacco and Cancer (American Cancer Society)
• Vitamin D and Cancer Prevention  (National Cancer Institute)Also in Spanish
• What Causes Cancer? (American Cancer Society)
• When Cancer Returns  (National Cancer Institute)

Specifics

• General Information about Extragonadal Germ Cell Tumors  (National Cancer Institute)
• Metastatic Cancer  (National Cancer Institute)Also in Spanish
• Occupational Cancer (National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health)

Genetics

• Genetic Testing for Hereditary Cancer Syndromes  (National Cancer Institute)
• Genetics Home Reference: BAP1 tumor predisposition syndrome  (National Library of Medicine)
• Genetics Home Reference: Bloom syndrome  (National Library of Medicine)
• Genetics Home Reference: Costello syndrome  (National Library of Medicine)
• Genetics Home Reference: Cowden syndrome  (National Library of Medicine)
• Genetics Home Reference: DICER1 syndrome  (National Library of Medicine)
• Genetics Home Reference: Li-Fraumeni syndrome  (National Library of Medicine)
• Genetics Home Reference: Peutz-Jeghers syndrome  (National Library of Medicine)
• Genetics Home Reference: rhabdoid tumor predisposition syndrome (National Library of Medicine)
• Genetics Home Reference: Rubinstein-Taybi syndrome  (National Library of Medicine)
• Genetics Home Reference: Werner syndrome  (National Library of Medicine)

Health Check Tools

• Cancer Risk Questionnaire (Siteman Cancer Center)

Videos and Tutorials

• Understanding Cancer Prognosis   (National Cancer Institute)

Statistics and Research

• Annual Report to the Nation on the Status of Cancer, 1975-2014, Featuring Survival (National Cancer Institute)
• Cancer and Obesity (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)Also in Spanish
• Cancer Care Gets Personal: How Tumor Treatments Are Changing (National Institutes of Health)Also in Spanish
• Cancer Clinical Trials at the National Institutes of Health Clinical Center (National Cancer Institute)Also in Spanish
• Cancer Data and Statistics Tools (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)
• Cancer Facts and Figures 2014 (American Cancer Society)
• Cancer Statistics  (National Cancer Institute)Also in Spanish
• Hair Dyes and Cancer Risk  (National Cancer Institute)Also in Spanish
• NIH Study Offers Insight into Why Cancer Incidence Increases with Age (National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences)
• State Cancer Profiles  (National Cancer Institute)
• Statistics: Number of Cancer Survivors  (National Cancer Institute)
• Tea and Cancer Prevention: Strengths and Limits of the Evidence  (National Cancer Institute)Also in Spanish
• Technologies Enhance Tumor Surgery: Helping Surgeons Spot and Remove Cancer (National Institutes of Health)Also in Spanish

Clinical Trials

• Clinical Trials Information for Patients and Caregivers  (National Cancer Institute)
• ClinicalTrials.gov: Carcinoma  (National Institutes of Health)
• ClinicalTrials.gov: Neoplasms  (National Institutes of Health)

Journal ArticlesReferences and abstracts from MEDLINE/PubMed (National Library of Medicine)

• Article: Pediatric Oncologic Emergencies. 
• Article: "No pain, No gain" still true with immunotherapy: When the... 
• Article: Genetic alterations crossing the borders of distinct hematopoetic lineages and... 
• Cancer -- see more articles 
• Cancer prevention -- see more articles 
• Cancer therapy -- see more articles 

Reference Desk

• Cancer Terms: After Treatment (American Society of Clinical Oncology)
• Dictionary of Cancer Terms  (National Cancer Institute)Also in Spanish
• National Cancer Institute News  (National Cancer Institute)

Find an Expert

• American Cancer Society 
• Cancer Genetics Services Directory  (National Cancer Institute)
• Find a Cancer Doctor (American Society of Clinical Oncology)
• Finding Treatment Centers (American Cancer Society)
• National Cancer Institute Also in Spanish
• NCI Designated Cancer Centers  (National Cancer Institute)Also in Spanish
• Organizations That Offer Support Services  (National Cancer Institute)Also in Spanish

Children

• Cancer in Children: MedlinePlus Health Topic  (National Library of Medicine)Also in Spanish

Men

• Cancer and Men (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)Also in Spanish

Women

• Cancer and Women (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)Also in Spanish

Seniors

• Cancer in Older Adults (American Society of Clinical Oncology) - PDF
• Cancer: Unique to Older Adults (AGS Foundation for Health in Aging)

Patient Handouts

• Cancer (Medical Encyclopedia)Also in Spanish
• Cancer and lymph nodes (Medical Encyclopedia)Also in Spanish
• Cancer treatment -- early menopause (Medical Encyclopedia)Also in Spanish
• Cancer treatment: preventing infection (Medical Encyclopedia)Also in Spanish
• Cancer treatments (Medical Encyclopedia)Also in Spanish
• How to research cancer (Medical Encyclopedia)Also in Spanish
• How to tell your child that you have cancer (Medical Encyclopedia)Also in Spanish
• Hyperthermia for treating cancer (Medical Encyclopedia)Also in Spanish
• Laser therapy for cancer (Medical Encyclopedia)Also in Spanish
• Photodynamic therapy for cancer (Medical Encyclopedia)Also in Spanish
• Targeted therapies for cancer (Medical Encyclopedia)Also in Spanish
• Understanding your cancer prognosis (Medical Encyclopedia)Also in Spanish
• Your cancer care team (Medical Encyclopedia)Also in Spanish
• Your cancer diagnosis: Do you need a second opinion? (Medical Encyclopedia)Also in Spanish