Dr. Mark Fesen serves as a medical oncologist at the offices of Central Care, PA in Great Bend and Wichita, Kansas. As part of his role, Dr. Mark Fesen draws on an in-depth knowledge of cancer biology to develop and implement treatment plans for patients.
Cancer cells are structurally and functionally different from normal cells. All healthy cells in the human body carry DNA that directs how they grow, what other cells they join with to form tissue, and when they stop growing and die off. A skin cell, for example, has a different set of instructional DNA than a cell on the heart wall, which is in turn different from a liver cell.
Sometimes, a cell's DNA becomes damaged. If so many of these cells develop such that the immune system cannot dispose of them, they begin to divide out of control and form growths known as tumors. Some tumors are benign, or non-cancerous, meaning that they grow slowly and do not spread to other areas of the body.
A benign tumor only poses a problem if it grows to the degree that it causes pain, interferes with normal body functions, or becomes large enough that it looks strange and thus affects the patient's self-esteem. Malignant tumors, however, are immediately dangerous due to the pace at which they grow.
The cells in a malignant tumor are able to generate new blood vessels that provide the tumor with oxygen and nutrients, thus enabling its own growth. Furthermore, because the tumor is now connected to the body's circulatory system, its cells can travel throughout the body and invade healthy tissue. When this happens, the cancer has metastasized and is much more difficult to eradicate.
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