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Lesser known facts about cancer

Cancer usually makes people feel all scared and serious. Let’s try to look at it from other angles and try to gain a better understanding of this terrible disease with Mrs Tammy Lee, Director (Holistic & Education), The Hong Kong Anti-Cancer Society.

Where did “Cancer” get its name?

“Cancer” means “crab” in Latin. The shape of cancer cells is very similar to crabs, with claws and feet sticking out that allow it to spread and take over other healthy cells, tissue and organs, much like a crab that roams around and can’t be avoided.

Why haven’t we heard of heart cancer?

There are hundreds of different types of cancer, and it has the potential to appear in nearly all areas of the body. But there is one organ that rarely succumbs to cancer – the heart. This is because the heart is our body’s most important organ and has a special protective mechanism. Plus, cancer is generally the result of and errors in cell division, and heart cells do not split. While it is possible that the membrane around the heart could be affected by the spread of other cancers, the chance of this happening is less than 1%.

Our lifestyle is the culprit

Cancer is said to be a disease caused by our living environment and habits. Genes, viruses and other uncontrollable risk factors may not necessarily lead to cancer, but long-term exposure to certain lifestyle habits will increase the chance of cancer developing. Put another way, cancer is largely preventable. Here is some relevant information about cancer:

  • South Korea and Japan, which eat more preserved foods, are the countries with the highest incidence of gastric cancers
  • Our modern lifestyle and eating patterns make it easy to become obese. Experts say that obesity will be the world’s largest health problem in the 21st century, because fat cells secrete hormones which increase the risk of cancer.
  • In the past, the rate of breast cancer in China was one in every 24 women. That has now soared to one in every 17.
  • In the past, relatively few people suffered from bowel cancer; but as our diet has become more rich and refined (and less fibrous), bowel cancer has become one of the most common cancers.

Actually, Hong Kong has its own “native” cancer. Want to know which kind of cancer it is, plus its causes and trends? Click the video now and find out more with Mrs Lee!

*Want to know more about cancer? Log on to The Hong Kong Anti-Cancer Society- Jockey Club “Walking Hand-in-Hand “Cancer Family Support Project website or Facebook page