Where the Name Cancer Came From
The word 'cancer' is actually derived from the Latin word for crab, & that is probably because of the way cancer sticks to any part that it grasp upon in an fixed manner, just like the disease. Cancer is a popular & generic word, as the actual medical term for cancer is 'Neoplasia', which is derived from a Greek which means 'new formation'. The body is made up of millions of cells which carry out some special functions, & each of these specialized cells is found in its natural environment, which include nerve cells, muscle cells, red blood cells & also the skin cells. Normally, the cells grow & divide to produce more & more of them, only when the body needs it, & this process helps keep the body very much healthy. However, sometimes the cells keep dividing even when new cells are not at all needed, without any control & unable to recognize natural boundaries, & also spreads into the areas of the body where actually they do not belong to. These extra cells form a mass of tissue which is called a growth or tumor. But one has to remember that having a tumor does not surely mean that you have cancer, as tumors are of two types, namely, benign & malignant. Benign tumors are non-cancerous which can be removed & also mostly do not recur.