Cancer is a class of diseases in which a group of cells display uncontrolled growth (division beyond the normal limits), invasion (intrusion on and destruction of adjacent tissues), and sometimes metastasis (spread to other locations in the body via lymph or blood). These three malignant properties of cancers differentiate them from benign tumors, which are self-limited, and do not invade or metastasize. Most cancers form a tumor but some, like leukemia, do not. This list looks at 10 common misconceptions about cancer.

Misconception: All cancers are the same.

Probably the biggest cancer misconception because the “Cure for Cancer” slogan makes people assume it is essentially one drug that will fix one illness. There are over a hundred types of cancer and they are all approached differently, depending on how much knowledge is known about the specific cancer and also depending on the patient’s specific needs. Thanks to the fund raising efforts of organizations such as Susan G. Komen and Avon, Medicine has made great advances in breast cancer research. Others, like pancreatic and esophageal cancers, are relatively out of the spotlight and as such, much is still being discovered and survival rates are still comparatively low.

Misconception: There is no cure.

It gets a bit confusing because we delve into technicalities but while the disease is incurable so far, the individual cancer patient can be cured. So while it’s technically true that cancer as a broad topic isn’t curable, it’s also horribly wrong and very much false to tell someone they can’t be cured of their cancer. There is a cured status, so as far as individuals are concerned, there is a cure for their cancer. Remission is the first five years immediately after diagnosis. If, after treatment and after those five years, there is no recurrence of the cancer, then the patient is declared cured. Certain types, like skin cancer, are curable by simply removing the tumor. While childhood leukemia and breast cancer are incurable as a disease, 80-90% of patients undergo successful treatments, become cured, and can live relatively normal lives.

Misconception: Cell phones cause cancer.

This is a misconception that is has no definite answer but the general consensus is that it is false. Fact of the matter is that cell phone technology is advancing rapidly and they now contain far less carcinogens than their predecessors. Studies on the correlation of cell phones to brain cancer are difficult to determine because it’s hard to accurately document such a study, however, the most recent attempt was done by the Danish Cancer Society and they have found no link between cell phones and brain cancer.

Misconception: Any lumps or large masses detected during cancer screenings are cancerous.

Not every abnormality is an automatic cancer diagnosis. It could just be a cyst that would either reabsorb itself into the body or need to be surgically removed. Some tumors are benign, meaning they are non-cancerous, however, determining which are benign, pre-cancerous, and cancerous is why screenings are important.

Misconception: Artificial sweeteners cause cancer.

This is a misconception that has regularly shown up in news headlines since the 1970s because of a 1969 study on the effects of cyclamate on mice. It was later disclosed that the mice had been given the cyclamate equivalent of 800 cans of diet soda per day for several weeks. No studies observing moderate amounts of artificial sweeteners have shown that it can lead to cancer. Artificial sweeteners are discussed because it is the most prevalent food myth but it applies to many other kitchen goods from coffee to broccoli to even water (specifically the fluoride content in water). Just as in the artificial sweeteners situation, too much of anything could lead to cancer, but it requires an excessive amount of the product to be potentially hazardous.

Misconception: All you need to beat cancer is a positive attitude, not treatment.

A good attitude does wonders to help alleviate the gravity of the situation. That’s why so many members of the cancer ward medical staff have a very pleasant demeanor. It certainly helps that the patient can maintain a positive outlook throughout treatment. However, cancer is much more than “mind over matter” and thus far, western medical research has provided the only avenue that has been repeatedly and comprehensively studied and consistently proves to be the most effective treatment against cancer.

Misconception: Surgery could cause cancer to spread throughout the body.

This myth probably originated decades before, when physicians could only diagnose the most advanced stages of cancer and surgeries were exploratory. Cancer treatment was still pretty rudimentary and without modern machinery, there was no way to fully determine if every cancerous cell was removed. Equipment has vastly improved since then and can provide a much clearer picture of what needs to be done during surgery.

Misconception: Only women get breast cancer.

Women are 100 times more likely to get breast cancer than men but since men also have breast tissue, it is still possible for them to develop breast cancer. The American Cancer Society states that roughly 2000 men are diagnosed with breast cancer every year.

Misconception: The prevalence of cancer is on the rise.

It’s true that there are more cases of cancer than in the past but it doesn’t take into account many other factors, such as increased population and longevity (risk for certain cancers increase with age). When compared to populations of the past, there is actually a decrease in the risk of cancer. This misconception may be prevalent simply because the topic is no longer taboo and people hear about it more often than they did in the past.

Misconception: Medical science already has and is withholding a cure for cancer.

Conspiracy theories abound and like many other conspiracy theories, this one is false. The Hippocratic Oath is taken to save lives, which a cure for cancer would surely do. If that weren’t enough, then surely no one would believe a pharmaceutical company wouldn’t want to be the first to claim ownership of a cash cow like the “Cancer Cure.” There was an article published recently of a drug that has been tested on four dogs and cured all four dogs that had cancers previously thought to be too advanced to be treated. With a few more successful cases, researchers will soon be allowed to see if this drug could yield similar results in human testing.

癌症是一种疾病，它的发病机理是由于人体的一些细胞出现无限制的生长（非正常分裂），侵袭（侵犯其他细胞并破坏附近的组织机构），甚至转移（经淋巴或血液扩散至人体其它部位） 。与癌症的三大危害性迥然不同的是，良性肿瘤具有自限性，不侵犯或不转移特征。然大多数的癌症发病于肿瘤，但有些癌症，像白血病则不是。此份列表讲述的是人们对癌症存在的十个常见误解。

误解的是: 认为所有的癌症都一样。

这也许是对癌症的最大误解，“癌症治疗”的广告标语以使得人们固认为每一种药物都可用来治疗某一类疾病。实际上人类能感染的癌症有100多种且它们的患得原理各不相同，如何有效治疗依赖于人们对具体癌症的了解程度，同样它也取决于患者的特殊需要。在苏珊·G·科曼和雅芳等组织机构的资金支持下，乳腺癌的医学研究取得了很大的进步。其他方面的研究如胰腺癌和食道癌等，也因此取得了一定程度的突破，然而还是有大量的癌症有待去发现而且现在癌症的存活率也仍然比较低。

误解的是: 认为没有治疗的良药。

这确实有点让人摸不着头脑，因为从技术层面上讲，目前这种病是无法医治的，除个别的癌症病人可得到康复例外。虽然从医术上讲大家都知道癌症是难以治愈的，但如果跟他人说他们的癌症是不可以医治的话那就是非常谬误与不确实际的。单就个人而言，还是有方法来治疗他们的癌症。因为确诊后的第一个五年时间是病情的缓解期。癌症的一个康复标准是：如果在经过治疗后五年病情没有复发，那么这个患者我们可以说他是得到了康复。有些类型的病症，像皮肤癌，切掉肿瘤后它是可以治愈的。但儿童白血病和乳腺癌这类病很难医治，80-90％的患者经过成功的治疗后，得到了康复，并能够过上正常的生活。

误解的是: 认为使用手机会致癌。

由于没有明确的科学解释能表明使用手机就会致癌，因此说手机危险则是一种误解，人们的普遍共识也是不正确的。事实上，随着手机生产技术的迅猛发展，现在手机所含致癌物质远比先前的产品要少得多。手机与脑癌之间是否具有关联性的研究也难以用充分的证据加以证明。而且最近丹麦癌症协会所做的研究发现手机和脑癌之间并没有什么联系。

误解的是: 认为癌症筛检中发现的任何肿块或大型瘤子都是危险的。

并不是身体出现的每一个异常都是癌症诊断的前兆。它也有可能仅仅是一个囊肿，能被身体再吸收或者通过手术就可以把它给切除掉。有些肿瘤是良性的，这就意味着它们并非会致癌，然而，通过做癌症筛检以确认哪些肿瘤是良性的，哪些属于癌前期病灶，以及哪些是恶性的非常必要。

误解的是: 认为人造增甜剂可致癌。

1969年做的一项甜精对老鼠影响的研究，致使自上世纪70年代以来，增甜剂可致癌就经常被作为头条新闻出现，这实在是一种误解。后来揭秘发现，原来是老鼠在连续几周内每天被喂入效性相当于800罐减肥苏打的甜精。目前并没有研究观测表明适量饮用人造增甜剂会导致癌症。人造增甜剂之所以被经常讨论，是因为它既是一种最具神话色彩的食品，又能广泛添加在咖啡、椰菜甚至水中（尤其是水中含有氟化物时）及其他厨房用具上。就算人造增甜剂像其它许多东西那样能致癌，但它也需是因过量适用才会产生潜在的危害。

误解的是: 认为战胜癌症只要有积极的态度就可以了，而不需要寻求治疗。

 好的态度着实能有效缓解病情的严重性。这也是为什么癌症病房的医护人员都有着良好服务态度的原因。同时它有助于病人在治疗过程中能保持积极的情绪。然而，癌症治疗不仅仅需要从“意志上战胜疾病”，而且迄今为止，经多方和全面的研究证明，西方医学也找到了有效的癌症治疗方法。

误解的是: 认为手术可能会使癌症扩及全身。

这个错误的观点几十年前就产生了，当时的医生们只能够诊断出晚期的癌症，手术操作处在探索的阶段。针对癌症的药物治疗也非常简单，加上缺乏现代化的医疗器械，因而没有办法完全确保每个癌细胞都被移除。但从那时以来，医疗设备有了很大的改进，手术需要时它们可以拍出非常清晰的照片。

误解的是: 认为只有女性才会得乳腺癌。

女性得乳腺癌的概率确实要比男性高出100倍，但由于男性也有乳腺组织，他们感染乳腺癌也在所难免。美国癌症协会说每年有将近2000的名男性被诊断出患有乳腺癌。

误解的是: 认为癌症发病率正呈上升的趋势。

的确现在患癌症的人数要比过去的多，但是它并没有考虑到其他的一些因素，如人口的增长和寿命的延长（有些癌症是伴随着年龄的增长而出现的）。与过去的人口相比，现在患癌症的风险实际上是有所下降了。然这种癌症发病率正呈上升趋势的误解之所以深入人心可能与现在癌症不再是一个忌讳的话题有关，而且现在人们较过去对癌症更易经常耳濡目染。

误解的是: 认为医药科学对癌症一贯采取保留治疗的方法。

虚假信息铺天盖地，与许多其他阴谋论一样，这个误解是错误的。希波克拉底誓言是旨在拯救生命，对癌症的治疗肯定也会遵循这一原则。如果这还不够的话，我想肯定没有人会去相信有制药公司不愿自己第一个成为拥有像“治癌药“所有权的。近期发表的一篇文章提到了有一种用在狗身上的药物成功地救治了四条身患癌症且被认为是无药可医的狗。如这样成功的案例多一点的话，研究人员就将会很快获得实施这一实验的权利看是否这种药物在人类临床上有着相似的效应。