India
A 52-year-old male asked:
How is cancer caused?
2 doctor answers • 3 doctors weighed in

Dr. Uma Swamyanswered
Radiation Oncology 17 years experience
Depends: While we are aware of some well established causes of cancer, like cigarettes, there is much that remains a mystery.
5.3k viewsReviewed >2 years ago

Dr. Ed Friedlanderanswered
Pathology 45 years experience
Genetic mutations: All cancers result from the accumulation of genetic mutations. The genes have a natural tendency to mutate, making life as we know it possible, and there's background radiation and chemicals that are part of nature and inescapable. Specific cancers have various hereditary (inherit a bad gene) and environmental (mutagen) causes; anything can promote by making mutated cells divide.
5.3k viewsReviewed >2 years ago
Similar questions
A 27-year-old male asked:
What are the causes of cancer?
6 doctor answers • 17 doctors weighed in

Dr. Pamela Merinoanswered
Internal Medicine 31 years experience
Multiple: Depending on the site there is a combination of enviromental, genetic and familial factors involved.
5.5k viewsReviewed >2 years ago
A 49-year-old member asked:
What are the causes of cancer and what causes it to spread?
1 doctor answer • 2 doctors weighed in

Dr. Jefferson Chenanswered
Neurosurgery 35 years experience
Mutation: Cancer is an abnormal proliferation of cells. There are mutations in the dna that lead to the uncontrolled growth of the cells.There are certain environmental factors like tobacco smoke or radiation that are clear mutagens.The cells grow rapidly and lose their contact inhibition-thus their local spread and invasion. Cancers can also spread through the blood and set up at distant sites (metastases).
5.1k viewsReviewed >2 years ago
A 37-year-old female asked:
Does cyclomethicone cause cancer?
1 doctor answer • 1 doctor weighed in

Dr. Joseph Torkildsonanswered
Pediatric Hematology and Oncology 40 years experience
No: As far as i can tell there is no medication named cyclomethicone. The closest to this is simethicone, and it has never been shown to be carcinogenic.
5.1k viewsAnswered >2 years ago
A 35-year-old member asked:
Can earrings cause cancer?
1 doctor answer • 2 doctors weighed in

Dr. Ed Friedlanderanswered
Pathology 45 years experience
You decide: Don't get your ears pierced until you're very sure it's what you want and know you're not a keloid former. The fact that many people get keloids from this gave rise to the myth that it "causes cancer" -- keloids aren't cancer but are troublesome.
5k viewsReviewed >2 years ago
A 21-year-old member asked:
Is radiation a cause of cancer?
3 doctor answers • 12 doctors weighed in

Dr. Ritesh Rathoreanswered
Hematology and Oncology 31 years experience
Yes: Environmental exposure (as in hiroshima, chernobyl) can lead to blood and thyroid cancer decades later. Occasionally, radiation used for treatments or frequent scanning (x-rays, ct scans) can lead to cancer later in life.
6.4k viewsReviewed >2 years ago
Last updated Jan 19, 2014
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