Question

Carcinomas are cancers that arise from epithelial tissues. Describe the events associated with the establishment of a carcinoma. In your answer, discuss (A) the morphological events and (B) changes in gene expression that must occur for an epithelial cell to become a malignant carcinoma cell, and (C) describe the behavior of a carcinoma cell as compared to an epithelial cell with respect to developmental biology.

Answer 1

Cancer results from the uncontrolled cell division, which occurs due to the mutations in genes. The three types of skin cancer are: Basal cell carcinoma (non-melanoma type) Squamous cell carcinoma (non-melanoma type) and Melanoma. The common cause of malignancies of the skin is overexposure to the UV (ultraviolet) light. Other etiological factors are being fair skinned and blue eyed, over exposure to X-ray therapies, hereditary factors and exposure to certain chemicals such as arsenic, coal tar, chronic osteomyelitis, etc.

Among the four types of tissues present in our body, epithelial tissue gives tissue to most of the carcinomas. This is because, all the organs in our body is covered by an epithelial layer, which is more exposed to mutagens or carcinogens than the other tissue types. Another reason is, epithelial cells divide more rapidly than the other tissue cells. Cells that divide at high rate are more susceptible to develop mutations and grow like cancer cells.