Types of Cancer

There are over 200 different types of cancer known to man. Understanding the different cancer types is important in understanding their diagnosis, management and prognosis.

Of the known cancer types, only ten percent of them are treatable with chemotherapy. The type of cancers called epithelial cancers like breast and certain skin cancers are more resistant to treatment.

Cancers types could be described in terms of the kind of cells from which the cancer arises, or based on the part of the body it exists in like skin cancer, or whether it is a childhood or adult cancer. All these different classes affects their behaviour, how they spread, treatment options and out come after treatment.

Cell Type

Carcinomas are cancers that originate from what is called epithelial cells. They make up over 85% of cancer types.

Epithelial cells are the types of cells that line the outside and inner walls of the body, like skin on the outside and include linings of the bowel, wind pipe, lungs, and urinary or genital tracts on the inside.

These lining cells divide regularly and are changed on daily basis. When there is error in the DNA that control cell division, cancer could occur in this cell type, causing carcinoma.

Examples of this kind of tumours are oral cancer, bowel or colon cancer, lung cancer, bronchial cancer or skin cancer to name a few.

They are a type of solid tumours. These types of cancer tend to spread through lymph more than other types.

Sarcomas are types of cancer arising from connective tissues like muscles, bones and cartilage.

They make up about 6% of cancer types. They tend to spread via blood stream more. They make up another group of solid state tumour.

LeukaemiaThese are cancers originating from the components of blood. They are non-solid tumours.

Those derived from the white blood cells called lymphocytes are referred to as lymphomas and those from plasma cells are called plasmacytoma or myeloma, depending on whether several or single sites are affected. They constitute 5% of cancer types.