Reflective Essay on Thyroid Cancer
What is cancer, specifically what is thyroid cancer? These are questions I am hoping to answer with the writing of this paper. My interest in the topic stems from it being a close subject for myself. Within the span of the last three years my oldest sister was diagnosed with thyroid cancer and it impacted her life drastically. She had to go through many different surgeries to remove tumors the cancer had caused, she also had to do many treatments of chemotherapy and at times was required to avoid contact with others in order to not interfere with the treatment. She was declared cancer free early this year. When my sister was still going through treatments for her cancer I had also begun to show early signs of thyroid cancer and immediately took a blood test and a C.T. scan with the tests, fortunately they had all returned negative. But, this experience has made me curious about the subject ever since.
I do not believe I know much about the topic and would like to know more to better understand what my sister went through during that time. I do know from that experience that you can randomly be diagnosed with the disease and would want to be prepared with knowledge. Throughout this paper I hope to learn exactly what the disease is, the different forms it comes in, how exactly it is treated and early signs. I would also want to get a deeper understanding on where we stand when it comes to finding a cure for cancer.
Cancer is a disease that occurs when DNA has multiple abnormalities leading to its mutation and rapid unregulated growth throughout the body. In normal circumstances damaged cells die off, but these mutations within the cell allow them to continue to multiply creating tumors. There are two types of tumors that can form, one being a benign tumor that grows, but does not spread throughout the body. Benign tumors are actually not cancerous because part of the definition of cancer is the spreading of the cells throughout the body. The other type of tumor is called a malignant tumor which can spread throughout the body and is in fact cancerous. Malignant tumors spread throughout the body with the use of the bloodstream and the lymphatic system. DNA actually contains tumour suppressor genes (TSG) and proto-oncogenes. Tumor suppressor genes are there for the purpose of controlling cell growth and preventing rapid division of a cell while pro-oncogenes speeds up the process of cell division. Cancerous cells spread quickly due to them containing pro-oncogenes.
Of all the different types of cancers that exist one of them is called thyroid cancer. It is named this because it forms in the thyroid gland. According to Funk and Wagnalls New World Encyclopedia the thyroid is an endocrine gland that produces the hormones tetraiodothyronine (T4), and triiodothyronine (T3). The purpose of these hormones are to “... stimulate oxygen consumption by cells and help regulate metabolism and growth.” (Funk and Wagnalls New World Encyclopedia.) Because the thyroid helps regulate your body's metabolism, a tumor can affect its ability to properly do so. This can lead to uncontrollable weight gain or less commonly weight loss. Of thyroid cancer there are many forms, the Salem Press encyclopedia of Health states the most common type of thyroid cancer is papillary, fortunately it also has the highest cure rate. The other type of thyroid cancer is follicular carcinoma.There are no specific reasons behind the development of thyroid cancer, it can be due to exposure to a carcinogen or it could be hereditary. Early signs of thyroid cancer could be the appearance of a nodule on a person's neck and the swelling of lymph nodes. People diagnosed with this form of cancer can go through surgery to get rid of the infected areas of the thyroid and can partake in chemotherapy and/or radiation treatments
One of the greatest reasons we have yet to find a cure for cancer is because unlike diseases such as smallpox it is not a single disease. Cancer comes in many different forms such as liver, thyroid or prostate cancer. This is just a miniscule selection; there are over 1000 forms of cancer. Each form requires a different type of cure to eradicate. Most forms of cancer are treated through the removal of tumors with surgery, as well as radiation and chemotherapy treatments. Chemotherapy can be administered through an injection directly into the bloodstream or through pills. Chemotherapy is the process of using cytotoxic agents that are damaging to all living cells. A specific type of chemotherapy drug is called an alkylating agent. Alkylating agents damage the DNA of a cell by destroying its double helix structure. Because cancer cells are rapidly multiplying they are exposed more severely to this alkylating agent and are not repaired as quickly as regular cells. Because regular cells are exposed as well. This means there is the chance they may also be killed during this chemotherapy process. A study by Yulan Yang has shown other potential results of taking chemotherapy to be nausea, vomiting and an overall sickness in patients. Another reason why cancer has no complete solution yet is the complexity that is presented with clonal heterogeneity. Clonal heterogeneity is when a tumors grows into multiple populations that then produce a diverse sub-clone. Each clone is slightly different from the others. Meaning each clone will respond differently from the rest to different types of medicines intended to cure the disease. One cell may die from the medicine and one may continue to thrive with the medicine.
This research has allowed me to get a better understanding of cancer in general, but more specifically thyroid cancer. What I have learned through the research of this paper is important because it allows me to have a better understanding of what my sister went through these past couple of years. It also gives me increased knowledge in the case that she is diagnosed with it sometime again in the future, or if it is in fact a hereditary disease. And someone else in my family has to deal with it including the possibility of myself.
A question I still have from this research is why isn’t chemotherapy a cure for cancer? If it gets rid of the cancerous cells, is it technically not a cure for cancer? From what I am understanding it is not classified as a total cure because it does not completely get rid of the cancerous cells in the body. I believe it only makes it undetectable. Another question I have from this research is how can cancer be hereditary? The only answer that would make sense for this question is the cancerous cell stays dormant until it finally presents itself. But, if cancer is a disease known for rapidly spreading, why would it stay dormant for so long, and how can some people live their whole life without it presenting itself?
Works Cited
Hosick, Howard L. ..Ph. D., et al. “Cancer.” Magill’s Medical Guide (Online Edition), 2021. EBSCOhost, search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&AuthType=ip,shib&db=ers&AN=86193961&site=eds-live&scope=site.
Natalia Vargas-Rondón, et al. “Role of Chromosomal Instability and Clonal Heterogeneity in the Therapy Response of Breast Cancer Cell Lines.” Cancer Biology & Medicine, vol. 17, no. 4, Nov. 2020, pp. 970–985. EBSCOhost, doi:10.20892/j.issn.2095-3941.2020.0028.
Yang, Yulan, et al. “Acupoint Injection for Alleviating Side Effects of Chemotherapy in People with Cancer: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.” Evidence-Based Complementary & Alternative Medicine (ECAM), May 2021, pp. 1–8. EBSCOhost, doi:10.1155/2021/9974315.
Mertoglu, Cuma. “Glucose Metabolism and Oncogenes in Cancer.” Annals of Medical Research, vol. 28, no. 8, Aug. 2021, pp. 1605–1610. EBSCOhost, doi:10.5455/annalsmedres.2020.09.903.
Price, Victoria, Ph. D. “Thyroid Cancer.” Salem Press Encyclopedia of Health, 2019. EBSCOhost, search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&AuthType=ip,shib&db=ers&AN=94462492&site=eds-live&scope=site.
Finley, K.Thomas, PhD. “Thyroid Gland.” Salem Press Encyclopedia of Science, 2019. EBSCOhost, search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&AuthType=ip,shib&db=ers&AN=87690410&site=eds-live&scope=site
“Thyroid Gland.” Funk & Wagnalls New World Encyclopedia, Jan. 2018, p. 1; EBSCOhost, search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&AuthType=ip,shib&db=funk&AN=th052700&site=eds-live&scope=site.
