Is the Cure for Cancer Imminent?

Is the Cure for Cancer Imminent?

Cancer. Even now, when healthcare has undergone so many advancements, hearing the word still brings a shiver down one’s spine. 

Most caused by genetic and lifestyle factors, cancer used to be a death sentence. There was no hope of recovery for those suffering from it. Now, some people have been able to survive it. But not without some deeply-scarring side-effects. Whether one can survive cancer or not is still a matter of chance. 

Despite all the advanced treatments, many are still lost to this deadly disease every day. Science works tirelessly to find the one cure that is effective 100 percent and leaves no lasting side effects. So far, that miraculous elixir has remained elusive. But recent developments have shown signs of definite improvement. 

Diagnosis

Cancer is a race against time. The sooner this disease is discovered, the better the patient’s chances are. Cancer in its early stages are infinitely easier to weed out that when it is in the advanced stages. Currently, several techniques such as X-rays, CT scans, and MRI scans are employed regularly by medical practitioners to diagnose the existence of tumor. 

These techniques can also determine whether it is malignant or not, and what organs are affected by it. It is entirely possible to discover cancer early. However, often patients don’t consult doctors quickly enough. They don’t suspect until it is too late that what they have could be cancer. People suffering from uncontrollable and abnormal swelling as well as incessant pain should consult doctors without delay.

Treatment

Cancer is a vastly diverse disease. Treatments will vary depending on the type, but will usually fall into several distinctive categories: surgery, radiation, chemotherapy, immunotherapy, hormone therapy, or gene therapy. Of them all, gene therapy is the youngest. It has a chance of being very effective. Damage to DNA is the root cause of cancer. 

Thus, the goal of gene therapy is to replace damaged genes with ones that work. Other gene therapies focus on further damaging cancer cell DNA to the point where the cell commits suicide. So far, no successful application of gene therapy has been accounted. However, scientists are hopeful and the potential is limitless.