Question

Name two types of cancers that affect the male and the female reproductive systems. Research statistics on the chosen types to share their impact on society. Do you think researchers are close to a cure for cancer? Explain your response.

Answer 1

Cancer affecting human males · Prostate cancer · Testicular cancer · Penile cancer Cancer affecting human females · Breast cancer · Endometrial cancer · Cervical cancer

The psychosocial issues affect patients in all stages of cancer. Emotional response can influence both morbidity and mortality. The increased emphasis on psychosocial oncology in recent years has led to more research, education, and training programs as more professionals appreciate the importance of this aspect of care. Psychosocial care of patients is needed in all phases of the cancer experience. Psychosocial problems that emerged from the initial diagnosis and treatment will resurface in recurrence. Because these patients already have been through some type of cancer treatment, preparing for treatment again may be more difficult because they know what to expect. If patients had severe side effects with the initial treatment, they may need more encouragement or more aggressive symptom management. Patients with recurrence experience higher levels of symptom distress, particularly fatigue and pain. On the other hand, family crises faced at the time of initial diagnosis may have strengthened the family members to better face this new challenge. The response of parents to recurrence in a child may be very difficult as they realize that a cure may not be possible. Facing the realization that the situation is out of their control is particularly trying. Parents facing the news of recurrence have been found to curb their immediate response to the bad news to maintain hopefulness and to attempt to remain focused on curative therapy. The psychosocial ramifications are serious, long-lasting, and broad, and they affect not only individuals with cancer but also their extended network of family, friends, and acquaintances. At every stage along the cancer continuum, the care delivered must address physical aspects of the illness in addition to the mental health and coping strengths of the patient and family.

Along with watchful waiting, highly sensitive screening brings us to vaccines and tumor-specific drugs. Currently, there is wide acceptance of vaccine strategies if a cancer has a viral etiology, with vaccines directed against the virus infection. With a low tumor burden, with reduced tumor-mediated inhibition of the immune system, and patients free of drugs that can prevent immune cell division, vaccines may be more successful for cancers that do not have an apparent viral etiology. However, any vaccination strategy depends on knowledge of efficient immunogens, still a research challenge for cancer, particularly the earliest stage cancers, and for many infectious pathogens. Application of one tumor-specific drug will select for small numbers of cancer cells with mutant, alternative signaling pathways, allowing virtually the same cellular effector molecules to facilitate almost the same cancer.