• Question: how would you describe cancer?

    Asked by Lily to Jimi on 16 Mar 2016. This question was also asked by Max.
    • Photo: Jimi Wills

      Jimi Wills answered on 16 Mar 2016:


      Cancer is cells that are growing and dividing out of control.

      * They no longer control how fast they grow.
      * They no longer listen to signals from the body telling them to stop.
      * They don’t care about protecting their DNA… which means…
      * They evolve quickly, and adapt.
      * They can disguise themselve from the immune system.
      * They can become resistant to drugs.
      * Eventually… they can control their environment:
      * They can “turn-down” the immune system.
      * They can grow blood vessels so the tumour can grow bigger

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