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| title | chunk | source | category | tags | date_saved | instance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Malignancy | 2/2 | https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Malignancy | reference | science, encyclopedia | 2026-05-05T07:30:28.374982+00:00 | kb-cron |
=== Surgery === Surgery can help manage or treat malignancy by either removing the tumour, localising it and/or determining whether there has been a spread to other organs. When undertaking surgery for malignancy, there are six major objectives which are considered. These include "prevention of cancer, diagnosis and staging of disease, disease cure, tumour debulking, symptom palliation and patient rehabilitation". Surgical prevention of cancer largely consists of removing the organ at risk of developing malignancy. This would occur if an individual is predisposed to the formation of malignant cells as a result of inherited genetic mutations and acquired diseases. Surgical diagnosis of malignancy involves completing a biopsy. This process requires a sufficient amount of tissue to make a confident diagnosis, and the handling of specimen to expand information provided from testing. Biopsies are categorised into four different processes: "fine-needle aspirate (FNA), core needle, incisional, and excisional". Curative surgery (also known as primary surgery) can be conducted when the malignant tumour has only invaded one area of the body. The objective is to remove the entirety of the malignant cells without violating the tumour; if the tumour is violated, the risk of both tumour spillage and wound implantation would increase. The surgical procedure of tumour debulking can be undertaken to increase the effectiveness of postoperative forms of treatment. Symptom palliation and patient rehabilitation do not play a role in controlling or reducing malignancy growth rather, they increase the patient's quality of life.
=== Photoradiation === Hematoporphyrin derivative (HPD) is a drug which was developed to be absorbed by malignant cells and only becomes active when exposed to light. It is commonly used to identify and localise cancers as when it is under activation of blue light the red fluorescence of the malignant tumour (due to the HPD) can be observed easily. The combination of HPD with red light (photoradiation) has been used on various malignant tumours including malignant melanomas and carcinomas on a range of different organs including the breast and colon. This form of treatment produces a singlet oxygen through the photodynamic process; where the oxygen molecule exists in an electronically excited state. The singlet oxygen is a cytotoxic agent which holds the ability to eradicate malignant cells by preventing both nucleic acid and protein synthesis. The treatment process also utilises HPD's capability of accumulating at higher levels in malignant tissues compared to most other tissues. In the case of deeply pigmented or larger tumours, a stronger course of this treatment process is required in order to be effective.
=== Hyperthermia === Malignancy can be treated through the use of hyperthermia by applying either surgical perfusion or interstitial techniques to the body. The use of this treatment type largely depends on the fact that malignant and normal cells have differing responses to the energy source used. This dependency is due to the intracellular changes which occur during hyperthermia; as the nucleic acids, cell membrane, and cytoskeleton within each cell is affected indirectly and/or through multiple pathways. The combination of these intracellular changes means there is no specific target of cell death in the hyperthermic process.
=== Chemotherapy === Chemotherapy is commonly used as either the primary treatment or in conjunction with other treatment forms such as radiotherapy or surgery. It can be administered through "injection, intra-arterial (IA), intraperitoneal (IP), intrathecal (IT), intravenous (IV), topical or oral". The purpose of chemotherapy is to use cytotoxic agents which kill rapidly dividing cells within the body. It targets the cellular mechanisms which allow the development of malignancy throughout the body. There are no specific areas which are targeted and so, there is a lack of differentiation between normal and malignant cells, resulting in a range of side effects. This includes bone marrow suppression, gastrointestinal problems, and alopecia. Some side effects are specific to the anticancer drug used, the most common being bone marrow suppression as bone marrow has the ability to divide rapidly due to high growth fraction. This is because anticancer drugs have the highest activity in high growth fraction tissues. Alkylating agents are used in chemotherapy as these are chemically reactive drugs which form covalent bonds when reacting with DNA. This results in breaks within DNA strands causing either inter-strand or intra-strand DNA cross-linking. The sub-classes of alkylating agents are "nitrogen mustards, oxazaphosphorines, alkyl alkane, sulfonates, nitrosoureas, tetrazines, and aziridines."
== Epidemiology == Malignancy has been a constant global health concern for a number of years, resulting in significant social and economic impacts on individuals with malignancy and their families. The risk of developing malignancy is 20.2%. In 2018, 18 million patients were diagnosed with a malignant tumour with lung, breast and prostate being the most common form. Additionally, there were approximately 10 million mortalities due to cancer in 2020, and there is an overall trend which demonstrated that malignant mortality has increased by 28% over the past 15 years. Lung cancer has the highest mortality rate in comparison to other forms of cancer, with the leading cause of development due to smoking. The number of smokers in China is rapidly increasing with tobacco killing approximately 3000 people each day. The diagnosis of lung cancer is most common within the 50–59-year age bracket. Further, it caused 1.8 million deaths in 2020 alone. In those aged 14 or younger, leukaemia is the most frequent form of malignancy with the brain and nervous system subsequent. These individuals account for approximately 1% of the cancer mortality rate – about 110,000 children each year. In the 15–49-year-old age bracket the most common form of malignancy is breast cancer with liver and lung cancer following. Finally, those aged 60 and over mainly develop lung, colorectal, stomach, and liver malignancy. Uses of "malignant" in oncology include:
Malignancy, malignant neoplasm and malignant tumor are synonymous with cancer Malignant ascites Malignant transformation Non-oncologic disorders referred to as "malignant" include:
Malignant hypertension Malignant hyperthermia Malignant otitis externa Malignant tertian malaria (malaria caused specifically by Plasmodium falciparum) Neuroleptic malignant syndrome
== See also ==
Precancerous condition
== References ==