This is topic On moles, cancer, and is there a membrane in your basement, or are ya glad to see me? in forum Books, Films, Food and Culture at Hatrack River Forum.
Hi, BlackBlade. I'm shifting the conversation over, just to give pH a little space. This doesn't need to be a big discussion, of course -- I think we understand each other, actually -- but because this is my work and I am a slave to precision, I'm going to worry the bone just a little more for clarity's sake.
quote:Originally posted by BlackBlade: Oh totally agree, but alot of people fall into murky territory when it comes to cancer especially when they hear its definition as "The uncontrolled reproduction of cells."
By that definition moles ARE cancer, but not really.
Non-cancerous moles are still respectors of personal property. Although they grow with wild abandon, their parties do not spill over into other suites: they are loud and obnoxious, yes, but they do not break entry through to the surrounding apartments. That is to say, they do not break through the basement membrane [and/or metastasize, which means to spread by blood or lymph vessels (like leukemia) to a distant site --- think climbing through the basement windows to get in the neighbor's apartment].***
Because of this, they are not "uncontrolled" in reproduction -- just kinda rambunctious (think wearing a lampshade and bad karaoke, but not actually shooting off Magnum 45s and defecating on the pool furniture). They don't endlessly self-replicate and they do show contact inhibition, which basically means they don't invade into other areas. They do their own thing, but they stay in their own place to do it. That is, they are controlled, just not rigid about it.
quote:There is the Benign/Malignant part, but that does not really cover everything.
Well, but it does. For something to be "cancerous" is to be "malignant," and therefore not to be "benign." All cancers are malignancies, and all malignancies are cancerous. It is what the words mean.
You might, instead, be thinking of the word "tumor," which is a swelling of any sort. They can be benign or malignant. [Or you might be thinking of "neoplasm" (an abnormal/dysfunctioning mass of tissue), which also can be either benign or malignant.] The malignant ones are no respectors of personal property! *shakes fist
quote:But thanks for your correction.
Your courtesy makes it a pleasure to count you are a friend and fellow conversationalist.
----
***There is a form of cancer called carcinoma in situ which, by definition, has not gone through the basement membrane yet. However, this is considered a stage in cancer development, as the characteristics which make invasiveness possible are there: anaplasia (disordered growth), indifference to contact inhibition, overly-dense vascularization, disordered nuclei and nucleioli, lack of differentiation, etc. They are the rowdy crew next door who are readying the pickaxes to break through into their neighbor's apartment. All they need is time and a few more beers, and they're there.
Additionally, the world of cancer admits to grades of malignancies. Tumors can be more or less malignant, but they all have to be non-respectors of personal property to earn the title of cancer. Some are just even nastier than others.
[ October 06, 2006, 07:13 PM: Message edited by: ClaudiaTherese ]
Posted by BannaOj (Member # 3206) on :
interesting, I need to read this more thoroughly because I have some moles that I know I need to keep an eye on. I also had hideous sun exposure as a teenager so I know I'm at risk as well.
AJ
Posted by BlackBlade (Member # 8376) on :
The additional information is appreciated
If only cancer were simply cured and I wouldnt have to set aside any brain space to understanding it.
Posted by Zeugma (Member # 6636) on :
Hey cool, thanks for posting this. I have a crazy number of moles (like, strangers stop me on the street and ask what's wrong with me number of moles), and thinking of them all as little cancer timebombs had been kind of a bummer. I much prefer the lampshade-wearing karaoke-singing metaphor.
And yes I know that some of them could still go bad someday, and I'll go see someone if any of them change. Posted by Samarkand (Member # 8379) on :
Oooh, I have a question!
So you know how you can have moles removed or bleach out sunspots or get peels to take off the top layer of your skin, etc.? Does this sort of cosmetic treatment reduce the risk of cancer by physically removing the cells at a high risk for further, possibly malignant mutation or, conversely, does it increase your risk of not detecting cancer by just removing the cosmetic signs? I've always wondered about that . . .
I do know that when women get breast reducation surgery, for whatever reason, it reduces their risk of breast cancer because less tissue is around to possibly go cancerous.
Posted by Blayne Bradley (Member # 8565) on :
this is kinda wierd discussion.
Posted by ClaudiaTherese (Member # 923) on :
Yup. Par for the Hatrack course, though.
Posted by Libbie (Member # 9529) on :
I'm glad we have docs here so I don't have to explain all this stuff! Apparently, I have fam-M syndrome, which basically means that I'm *practically* guaranteed to get melanoma some day (yaaay). I'm not worried, because I feel that my doctors and I have prepared me well! I go to my skin-cancer-specializing dermatologist every three months, have mole mapping done regularly, all that good stuff. I'm pretty confident that when melanoma hits, I'll catch it in situ and it will be no big deal.
But I can definitely sympathize with Pearce. It's frightening, and weird, and it's got to be even moreso for somebody who hasn't done a lot of learning about melanoma yet.
So, thanks to both our resident doctors for this thread! Melanoma usually isn't something to be too afraid of (but definitely something to be on the lookout for!), and I'll be sending all the positive vibes I have to Pearce's brother! Good thing he's got a nice lady lookin' out for him. Posted by Libbie (Member # 9529) on :
quote:Originally posted by Samarkand: Oooh, I have a question!
So you know how you can have moles removed or bleach out sunspots or get peels to take off the top layer of your skin, etc.? Does this sort of cosmetic treatment reduce the risk of cancer by physically removing the cells at a high risk for further, possibly malignant mutation or, conversely, does it increase your risk of not detecting cancer by just removing the cosmetic signs? I've always wondered about that . . .
I do know that when women get breast reducation surgery, for whatever reason, it reduces their risk of breast cancer because less tissue is around to possibly go cancerous.
Okay, I'm not a doctor, but (see above) I ask my doctor an awful lot of questions about melanoma.
According to what I've learned, the answer is no. The melanin cells which can turn cancerous are deeper down in your skin than just on the surface. Plus, melanoma is more likely to arise out of a brand-new spot than a more "established" one (although it can come from a long-established mole or birthmark).
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