Why Is Heart Cancer So Rare?
Cancer is caused by an abnormal growth of certain tissues. But even though any organ can be infected by cancer, we rarely come across heart cancer. Why is that?
At its core, the heart is simply a muscle. The muscle tissues in the heart have a special characteristic that it does not divide and multiply in numbers like tissues in other parts of the body. This makes it difficult for cancer cells to find a carrier to piggyback on and eventually grow and become uncontrollable.
The heart cells of an average human being will stop dividing by the age of nine. After that, further growth of the tissues will occur by expansion in cell size, not through cell division.
While this characteristic is a benefit in terms of cancer immunity, it is bad news when it comes to heart attacks. Heart attacks kill some of the heart tissues and there will not be any regenerative mechanism for new tissues to replace the old.
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Abhinav, this was very informative. I was not aware of the reason.
ReplyDeleteWould kids under 9, have a higher chance of having a heart cancer?
Tumors can grow in the heart of children under 9, however most are benign. According to the Hospital For Sick Kids, less than 10% of all heart tumors for kids under the age of 12 are malignant.
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That is so interesting! I had no idea it was so rare.
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