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SSC- Biology of Cancer > Tutorials > Flashcards

Tutorials Flashcards

1
Q

What are the risk factors for prostate cancer?

A
  • Male gender
  • African American
  • BRCA gene
  • Family history
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2
Q

How is prostate cancer different in African Americans?

A

More aggressive

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3
Q

What is considered to be a ‘family history’ of prostate cancer?

A

Close family member contracting it under 50 years old

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4
Q

How does prostate cancer present?

A

Hesitation

Nocturia

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5
Q

What investigations can be done to detect prostate cancer?

A
  • PSA
  • DRE
  • USS and biopsy
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6
Q

What is the problem with PSA?

A

It is also raised in many other situations, e.g. Age, infection, stones, BPH

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7
Q

What is the problem with DRE?

A

Doesn’t feel the transitional zones

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8
Q

How is a prostate biopsy carried out?

A

TRUS system -fires biopsy needles through perineum and into the prostate

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9
Q

How is prostate cancer treated if it has not metastasised?

A

Hormone control - testosterone reduction therapy (LH/FSH antagonists)
Prostatectomy
Active surveillance

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10
Q

What is the problem with testosterone reduction therapy?

A

Can loose libido, become impotent, and get osteoporosis

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11
Q

What is the prognosis of prostate cancer?

A

Earlier presenting ones tend to be more aggressive, late presenting ones tend to be benign

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12
Q

Where does prostate cancer like to metastasise to?

A

Bone

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13
Q

Describe the difference between primary bone cancer and prostatic metastases to bone?

A

Bone cancer normally lowers bone density, but prostate metastasised cancer tends to form sclerotic bone metastases, leading to greater deposition of bone + white x-ray appearance

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14
Q

What are the risk factors for breast cancer?

A 
Hereditary (BRCA 1/2, Li-Fraumeni)
Oestrogen exposure
Georgraphy
Radiation
Klinefelter's syndrome
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15
Q

What can increase oestrogen exposure?

A

Early menarche
Late menopause
Obesity post menopause

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16
Q

Geographically, where is breast cancer more common?

A

West

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17
Q

How does breast cancer present?

A

Abnormal screening result
Skin changes
Nipple changes/discharge
Lump

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18
Q

When is breast cancer screening offered?

A

Between 50-70 years

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19
Q

What conditions might cause calcifications on mammography?

A 
DCIS
Papillary lesion
Cancer
Fibroadenomas
Normal breast tissue
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20
Q

What investigations follow a positive breast cancer screening?

A

Fine needle aspiration and cytology or needle biopsy

Invasive lobular carcinoma patients also get MRI scans to pick up any malignancies not otherwise detected

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21
Q

What feature on biopsy might indicate breast cancer?

A

Lack of myoepithelial cells

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22
Q

How is breast cancer staged?

A

TNM

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23
Q

How is breast cancer graded?

A

Bloom-Richardson

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24
Q

What receptors to early stage breast tumours tend to have?

A

Oestrogen receptors

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25
Q

What is the result of the presence of oestrogen receptors in a lot of early stage tumours?

A

Tamoxifen is a viable option

26
Q

What receptor to late stage breast tumours tend to have?

A

HER2 receptors

27
Q

What is the result of a lot of late stage tumours having HER2 receptors?

A

Herceptin is a good option

28
Q

When is lymph node dissection given in breast cancer?

A

When cancer has been shown to spread beyond the axillary nodes

29
Q

What feature to breast cancers that present before menopause tend to have?

A

Tend to lack HER-2 or oestrogen receptors, meaning no treatment options are really viable

30
Q

What part of the breast structure is affected in ductal or lobular carcinomas?

A

The epithelium

31
Q

What part of the breast structure is affected in a Phyllodes tumour?

A

Stroma

32
Q

What are the categories of cervical cancer?

A

HPV related

Non-HPV related

33
Q

What causes HPV related cervical cancer?

A

Produces viral proteins E6 and E7, which inhibit p53 and pRB.
P53 normally stimulates cell death following cellular damage, and pRB inhibits the continuation of the cell through the cell cycle

34
Q

What causes non-HPV cervical cancer?

A

Sporadic p53 mutations

35
Q

How does cervical cancer present?

A

Abnormal screening result

Bleeding outside of menstrual bleeding, e.g. Post coital, post-menopausal

36
Q

What does cervical cancer screening involve?

A

Smear and PAP stain

37
Q

What is observed in screening?

A

Celllular and HPV composition

Look for CIN (cervical intraepithelial neoplasia) - stage 1, 2, or 3

38
Q

What happens when there is an abnormal cervical screening result?

A

Cut out the tumour using hot wire

39
Q

How is cervical cancer staged?

A

FIGO staging

40
Q

How is cervical cancer treated?

A

Loop biopsy may be enough to remove entire tumour

If not, may have to remove cervix - tracholectomy (cervical removal without uterus removal) or hysterectomy

41
Q

Why are melanomas thought to be so aggressive?

A

Because they arise from neural crest cells, where the cells de-differentiate and become more motile

42
Q

What are melanomas prone to?

A

Dormancy

43
Q

Where can melanomas metastasise to?

A

Almost everywhere, including the bowel and embryo, but not the heart or cornea

44
Q

How do melanomas that have developed immunity appear?

A

Darker patches of skin, which are pigment laden macrophages

45
Q

Where are the risk factors for melanoma?

A 
5 or more large moles (10x risk)
Red hair (2x risk)
Inability to tan (2x)
Sunburn (2x)
Family history (2x)
46
Q

Where do melanomas tend to have a peak occurrence rate?

A

50

47
Q

What mutation do melanomas tend to have?

A

BRAF

48
Q

How do melanomas present?

A

New mole, or mole that has changed
Major features - size, shape colour
Minor features - diameter >7mm, oozing, parasthesia, inflammation

49
Q

How is melanoma staged?

A

TNM, but T = Breslow thickness

50
Q

What is Breslow thickness?

A

The distance from the granulocyte layer of the epidermis to the lowest melanocyte

51
Q

What are the different stages of melanoma?

A

I - early primary
II - late primary
III - nodal involvement
IV - metastasis

52
Q

How is stage I and II melanoma treated?

A

Excise with margin around tumour

53
Q

How is stage III melanoma treated?

A

Surgery

Adjuvant chemotherapy

54
Q

When is treatment offered in stage IV melanoma?

A

When there are only a few metastases, or immune checkpoints are found

55
Q

How does ipiliminab treat melanoma?

A

It blocks CTLA-4 on T cells, which prevents MHC binding of APC to T cells, therefore there is a lack of T cell inhibition, and T cells react more to APCs

56
Q

How does penbrolizumab treat melanoma?

A

It prevents T cell inhibition, leading to greater immune response on tumour

57
Q

What are the steps in the MAPK pathway?

A

RAS → RAF → MEK → ERK → Cyclin D activated → CDK-4 activated → RB phosphorylated to allow S phase to continue

58
Q

What steps in the MAPK pathway are frequently mutated in melanoma?

A

Ras 15%

Raf 50%

59
Q

What tumour suppressor is often mutated in melanoma?

A

P16

60
Q

What does p16 normally do?

A

Inhibits CDK4

SSC- Biology of Cancer (11 decks)

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