The Columbia evening Missourian. [volume] (Columbia, Mo.) 1920-1923, 1922-11-17

number of other irritants may be 9
means of melting cells to a lawles:
growth. But these alone are not suffi
Icient to produce cancer. There must be
an inherited tendency and some one OF
more Of these other factors. For in
stance | have never seen a cancer Of
the palm of the hand or the sole Of the
foot.
Cancer is not an inherited disease in
the sense that child Of the parent who
has had cancer will be born afflicted
with the disease or that all the children
Of any considerable percentage of the
parents that have had cancer will have
the disease.
"When we consider the number of
cases, il is not surprising that occasion
ally one may see two members of fam
lily with the disease. This does not indi-
cate that it is a cancer family. Better
be it explained by the law of chance.
Cancer is not contagious disease and
it should not be for a moment believed
that cancer manifests itself in house
or a certain group of houses.
Cancer is not an infectious disease.
1t is not transmissible or communicable
from husband to wife or vice versa or TO
some other member of the family or
friend. This has been proved absolutely
by the experiment Of the late DR.. Nick.
olas Sem, one Of Americas foremost
surgeons. As an example of this sur
geons belief of the non-infectious nature
OF the disease he repeatedly introduced
material from cancers into his own body
through cuts made through the skin If
his own forearm using the same instru-
ments that were used in the operation on
a cancer patient. Were this disease COM
municable, Doctor Sem would have de.
veloped cancer many times from this
experiment. But such did not occur.
The thing with which the public is
largely interested, is when TO expect can
Ger. Cancer is silent disease. often
making its appearance like thief in
the night, nothing being known of it
until some organ is partially destroyed
or often gone. Unfortunately. small
and early cancers give no symptoms IN
less they are on the skin, lip. tongue or
elsewhere on the surface of the body
where they can be seen and left. In
stomach or internal organs, cancer does
not give rise TO symptoms until il is
quite large and it is important that any,
one having disturbances of stomach or
intestines. loss of weight or anemia 90
at once TO a physician. One Of the lat. !
est symptoms of cancer is pain. When |
it gives a great deal of pain, it is usually
beyond operation.
The following are the more common
conditions from which cancer develops |
and are known as precancerous condi- !
lions; first. moles or warts on the skin
iii removed never cause cancer. if left
do; second. chronic ulcers. /
cracks or assures of the skin due to old /
burns and scars; cancer of the lip and !
mouth developing from pipe smoking, IT. i
ritating. jagged broken teeth or tooth /.
snags, ill fitting dental plates. chewing
OF betei nuts or tobacco: ulcer of the
stomach is known to become a site of |
erosions, alterations and tares
OF the cervix; Jumps or small hard mass !
es in breasts frequently develop into
cancer; gallstones retained in diseased ,
gall bladder; chimney sweeps cancer: /
many tumors essentially harmless capa. |
BILE of being converted into cancer espe-
cially in the later years of life.
In cancer the cells become detached
by massage, friction or injury and are
to other tissues and organs
where they find suitable soil. and there
set up new growths for secondary tu-
mors. When the primary tumor is not
removed en- masse there is
always to be expected a recurring tumor
or tumors which develop from the cells
Or seeds remaining in the tissue at the
time Of the operation.
The prospect or hope for the cancer
patient is early diagnosis and removal
Of tumor. Where cancer is removed ear
y, that is in its very beginning or in