On the Origin of Cancer

Abstract

Why does a patient get cancer?That is a question which summarizes the problem of cancer and which must have often occurred to you when a patient presents himself or herself, apparently in good health except for some obscure and not necessarily painful symptoms, and on examination a malignant growth is found, sometimes in an early stage but possibly already in an advanced stage, although the patient may have presented himself as soon as he noticed that something was wrong.It is this insidious onset of cancer-striking a patient like a bolt from the blue-which has given the disease the air of a grim mystery. Interpretation of Age IncidenceIf I were asked in what respect the experimental investi- gation of cancer of the last fifteen years has most pro- foundly altered our outlook on the cancer problem, I would say it lies in the correct interpretation of the age incidence.The frequency of cancer increases with in- creasing rapidity as age advances.This can be readily seen from the following table, which gives the mortality rate per million people from cancer of all sites in decennial age groups in England and Wales: Age Groups: 0-15-25-35-45- 55-65-75-