암은 과연 정복될 수 있는가? = Can We Win the War against Cancer?

다국어 초록 (Multilingual Abstract)

Cancer is one of the major causes of death in the world. Cancer begins when a cell breaks free from the normal restraints on uncontrolled growth and spread. Over the past 25 years, scientists have uncovered a set of basic principles that govern the development of cancer. The cells in a tumor descend from a common ancestral cell that at one point initiated a program of inappropriate reproduction. Furthermore, the malignant transformation of a cell comes about through the accumulation of mutations in specific classes of the genes within it. Among them, two gene classes, oncogenes and tumor suppressor genes, account for much of the uncontrolled cell proliferation seen in human cancers. More than half the cancer death can be attributed to tobacco smoke and diet in worldwide. Therefore, a cancer death can be avoided through prevention strategies, including never smoking and eating certain vegetables and other foods that counteract the activity of cancer-causing agents (carcinogens) in the body. Improvements in medical imaging technology and the power of the new molecular diagnostic tools will be able to diagnose the cancer in early stage. Although the mainstays of cancer treatment - surgery, radiation and chemotherapy- are being refined and combined in ways that can help patients enjoy longer and more fulfilling lives, the new approaches to cancer treatment such as immunotherapy and the molecularly targeted approach (gene therapy to restore normal suppressor gene, antisense inhibitors for oncogene, angiogenesis inhibitors, etc.) would combat cancers without the devastating side effects of many current therapies in the near future.