Although only a film about the cure for cancer, 'The Medicine Man' did bring home the need for more research into cancer; fortunately there is a worldwide research program being carried out and it's just a matter of time. The cure will come eventually and the world will rejoice that this awful disease that can strike anyone at any time has been silenced. The causes for cancer seem to be many but despite all the knowledge we gain, it is still almost impossible to know if or when a person will contract it.If someone were to ask you what cancer was, would you be able to give them a definition like the one in this article? This is a disease where unhealthy cells grow, divide and then expand into other cells, often transferring to parts of the body using a method called metastasis.A benign tumor, unlike a malignant cancerous one, does not continue to grow and invade other cells; they affect many people without them even knowing they are there; in rare circumstances a benign tumor may turn malignant. Whilst it is not generally a young person's disease, it can occur at any age; cancer is responsible for around 130,000 deaths for every one million people each year. Cancer is an abnormality in the body's cells and can be caused by a number of agents including carcinogens or poisons such as smoke, infectious agents or radiation.For some people the problem lies not with any form of external poison although faults with their parents DNA or genetic makeup can result in a person being born with the diseased cells. It is still not fully understood why one person will contract the disease and another be free from it but it is believed that the interactions between any carcinogens and each person's particular DNA is complicated.Owing to this ongoing, worldwide research, we do actually know a considerable amount about cancer even if we are some way from finding a complete and consistent cure. Much of the world's research into diseases is to try and find the reason why some people do not contract certain diseases whilst others do. Knowledge like this could enable more people avoid contracting cancer in the first place.The food you eat on a regular basis will have an effect on your health, especially in the future. Some believe it may even be causing a large number of cases in certain groups of people. Dairy foods are also considered to be a cause; calcium from dairy products is thought to be possible cause of prostrate cancer in males although other foodstuffs that could create problems are, too much salt and saturated fat.Cancer can affect any part of the body from the bones, blood, skin or organs; nowhere is safe from it. This is an insidious disease that can take a long time to surface but fortunately the number of forms that can be treated is increasing all the time. Advancements in medical techniques mean that cancer in many cases can be treated and often completely cured; it is only a matter of time before a complete cure is discovered.