Malignancy

What is thyroid cancer and its causes ?

The thyroid is a gland in the neck. It has two kinds of cells that make hormones. The thyroid is shaped like a butterfly and lies at the front of the neck, beneath the voice box (larynx).

The thyroid gland contains mainly 2 types of cells — thyroid follicular cells and C cells (also called parafollicular cells). The follicular cells use iodine from the blood to make thyroid hormone, which helps regulate a person’s metabolism. C cells (parafollicular cells) make calcitonin, a hormone that helps regulate how the body uses calcium.

Different cancers develop from each kind of cell. The differences are important because they affect how serious the cancer is and what type of treatment is needed.
A healthy thyroid is a little larger than a quarter. It usually cannot be felt through the skin. A swollen thyroid is called a goiter. Most goiters are caused by not enough iodine in the diet.
Lumps or bumps in the thyroid gland are called thyroid nodules. Most thyroid nodules are benign, but about 1 in 20 is cancerous. People can develop thyroid nodules at any age, but they are most common in older adults.

Thyroid nodules can be benign or malignant:

- Benign nodules are not cancer. Cells from benign nodules do not spread to other parts of the body.
- Malignant nodules are cancer. They are generally more serious and may sometimes be life threatening. Cancer cells can invade and damage nearby tissues and organs.

Causes of Thyroid Cancer

The following conditions have been cited in various sources as potentially causal risk factors related to Thyroid cancer:
- Cancer begins with an alteration to the structure of DNA that is found in all human cells. This is known as a genetic mutation.
- Age : most people are over 40.
- Gender : women 3 times more than men.
- Race : Caucasians are more likely than African Americans.
- Iodine deficiency.
- Radiation exposure.

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Staging for Chronic Myelogenous Leukemia

Because leukemia starts in the bone marrow and often has spread to other organs by the time it is detected, there is no need for traditional staging. All leukemias are classified according to their genotypes, or their unique chromosomal arrangements, which also enables the physicians to determine risk factors.

Staging for Chronic Myelogenous Leukemia (CML)

CML is divided into 3 groups that help predict outlook. Doctors call these groups phases instead of stages. The phases are based mainly on the number of immature white blood cells – myeloblasts (“blasts”) — that are seen in the blood or bone marrow.

Chronic Phase
- Patients in this phase typically have less than 10% blasts in their blood or bone marrow samples.
- These patients usually have fairly mild symptoms (if any) and usually respond to standard treatments.

Accelerated Phase
Patients are considered to be in accelerated phase if any of the following are true:
- The bone marrow or blood samples have more than 10% but fewer that 20% blasts.
- High blood basophil count (basophils making up at least 20% of the white blood cells).
- Increased white blood cell counts that do not go down with treatment
very high or very low platelet counts that are not caused by treatment
new chromosome changes in the leukemia cells.

Blast Phase
- Bone marrow and/or blood samples from a patient in this phase have more than 20% blasts.
- The blast cells often spread to tissues and organs beyond the bone marrow. These patients often have fever, poor appetite, and weight loss.