Cancerous tumor

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A tumour (in the USA spelled 'tumor') is an abnormal growth of a group of cells in a living organism. A cancerous tumour is a more dangerous variety, as it can spread throughout the organism.

[edit] Tumour

In a living organism such as Humans, all cells have a specific function which contributes to the whole; for example, red blood cells carry oxygen to the cells so they can respire. The body uses means such as hormones to control how many cells of a particular type are created so that it may economically utilise nutrients to remain alive.

A tumour results when, for whatever reason, these controls fail. A tumour is simply a lump of cells that can be removed, although the difficulty of this procedure depends on the nature of the rogue growth. A tumour may appear as as an excess deposit of fatty tissue on the nape of the neck where it sits innocently, not affecting the health of the patient and easily removed through surgery; but a tumour growing in a vital organ such as the lungs and must be removed to prevent long-term detrimental health effects.

Genetics plays a major part in tumour growth; a patient whose parents or other close biological relatives have suffered from tumours has a much greater risk of developing a tumour of their own. Smoking is another major risk factor (especially for tumours of the lungs and respiratory system).

[edit] Cancerous Tumours

A cancerous tumour, however, is far more notorious. The abnormal cells don't simply grow out of control, they spread to many other systems of the body. A tumour growing on the lungs, for example, may spread to areas such as the brain.

It is difficult for modern medicine to completely remove cancerous tumours from a patient: surgery can remove large tumours and radiation or chemotherapy treatments can destroy other such diseased cells, but the actual cause of the abnormal cell growth remains unclear.

In certain cases cancerous tumours can cause long-term pain and suffering to the patient and no amount of treatment will rid the body of the disease. This has been used by pro-euthanasia groups to point out that sometimes death can be a release from long-term suffering that medicine cannot help with.