Cancer: The
Scariest Disease in Humans | How to be Safe?
"Never drank alcohol, never smoked, but still got cancer. How is
this possible?" "To understand cancer better, we need to understand
the cells in the human body." "Every day 330 billion cells of our
body die are are replaced." "When Yuvraj Singh got cancer, when
Sanjay Dutt got cancer, he was exercising even while getting chemotherapy.
" "It is necessary to have this level of dedication to beat
cancer." "Around 42% of the cancer cases globally are
preventable." "And these are the 5 things you need to do if you want
to avoid cancer." Hello, friends! Cancer is probably the most feared
disease in the world. There was a famous dialogue in the film 'Queen' where the
lead character Rani says, "Gupta uncle got cancer.
He never drank alcohol, never smoked, but still got cancer. He should've
tried drinking at least." This Gupta uncle hadn't consumed alcohol or
cigarettes ever, but he still got cancer. Rani says it would've been better if
he consumed alcohol sometime. Obviously, it was a comedy scene, but many people
actually think like this.
People might know someone who never even touched alcohol or cigarettes,
but still got cancer. How is this possible? On the other hand, there are many
people who spent their lives smoking and drinking, but never contracted cancer.
Friends, the truth is that cancer is a complex topic. There is no doubt that
drinking alcohol increases the risk of 7 types of cancer.
Like liver cancer, breast cancer, oesophagus cancer, etc. And smoking
increases the risk of 16 different types of cancer, including lung cancer,
mouth cancer, throat cancer, pancreatic cancer, etc. But, there aren't only 16
types of cancers. There are more than 200 types of cancer, depending upon the
body part it starts in.
So, alcohol and smoking are definitely two of the major reasons behind
cancer. But there are many other reasons for cancer apart from these. What are
the reasons which you can eliminate to reduce the risk of getting cancer? How
does this disease work exactly and why is it so harmful to humans? In today's
video, let's understand cancer in depth.
A young child named Chirag, went through a routine checkup. It was found
that his haemoglobin level was low. A test revealed that Chirag has a blood
disorder called Thalassemia Major. "It was a random test, by which we came
to know that he is Thalassemia Major. And then life took a turn." Because
of this, the body is unable to produce haemoglobin and healthy red blood cells
properly.
That means Chirag will need blood transfusion for the rest of his life.
In India, every year, around 10,000 to 15,000 children are diagnosed with
Thalassemia. It's not surprising that India is known as the Thalassemia capital
of the world. This is an inherited disease. You have chances of contracting it
only if your ascendants had it.
But Thalassemia can increase the risk of getting cancer. In a 2015
Taiwanese study, it revealed that compared to the general population,
Thalassemia patients are 52% more likely to get cancer. Every three weeks, when
Chirag was taken to the hospital for a transfusion, he asks his parents, his
friends don't go to the hospital, so why do his parents take him? " But
when Chirag was about 7-8 years old, he started to understand somewhat that the
issue is within him, which is why he has to go to the hospital every 3 weeks.
With medicine, Chirag started to adjust with the transfusion procedure.
When IV lines would penetrate his skin, he wouldn't cry. But the parents felt
the pain. Then one day, a doctor told them about DKMS, a stem cell registry.
Now, friends, to understand cancer, it is important to understand stem cells.
Because stem cells and cancer have a significant link. What are stem
cells? You can take a guess from their name. Stem Cells. These are the cells
that make other cells. They can evolve into different types of cells. Along
with this, stem cells can even replicate themselves. These are the cells that
make blood cells, skin cells, muscle cells.
These cells can repair damaged tissues. This is why, while treating
blood cancer and blood disorders, stem cells are crucial. At the beginning of
pregnancy, when a fertilised egg becomes a blastocyst, at the early stages
before the embryo develops into a child, the stem cells found in the blastocyst
are called embryonic stem cells.
These cells that can become any type of cell required by the body. But
unfortunately, when humans grow up, adult humans do not have such stem cells,
that can develop into every kind of cell. The stem cells in adults, also known
as stomatic stem cells, can differentiate according to the tissues or organs of
the body they are in.
For example, the stem cells in our brain can convert into brain cells
only. The stem cells in our skin can convert into skin cells only. And the
blood stem cells in our body, can be converted into different types of blood
stem cells. Overall, friends, there are 400 types of cells in our body. Like
red blood cells, white blood cells, nerve cells, fat cells, skin cells.
Look at this research from September 2023. According to this, the total
number of cells in our body goes into trillions. A young child has 17 trillion
cells. An average adult female has 28 trillion cells. And an average adult male
has 36 trillion cells. 36,000,000,000,000. Every day, billions of cells die and
billions of news cells are created.
Specifically, 330 billion cells, which is around 1% of the total number
of cells in our body, are replaced every day. There is a popular philosophical
saying, "You are not the same person you were this morning."
"You keep on changing every moment like a river." This is literally
true in the context of our body.
This changing every moment, cells regenerating every day, is done by
stem cells. The regeneration in different tissues is undertaken by the stem
cells of that tissue. But in all this, one organ of our body is very unique.
Our liver. Our liver is a unique organ because in it, fully developed, fully
specialised liver cells are also divided and can rapidly increase their number.
That means, our liver is the only organ in our body that acts like a
lizard's tail. If you cut off a lizard's tail, it can grow again. Similarly, if
you cut off 90% of our liver, it will grow again. But this does not mean that
the liver cannot be damaged. If you say that beer is not an alcoholic drink, or
that wine is good for your health, or if you are one of those people who are
proud of their drinking capabilities, drinking alcohol has the worst effect on
the liver and increases the risk of liver cancer.
But not just alcohol, if you keep eating junk food, your weight keeps
increasing, keep consuming every random "herbal" thing, you can get
liver problems. In India, every year, around 270,000 people die due to liver
diseases. Which is 18.3% of the global liver disease-related deaths. But coming
back to the topic of stem cells and regeneration, it is important to clarify
one thing.
The various types of cells in our bodies, the rate of regeneration of
each type is different. Like this major study from May 2008 has shown that
every year, 10% of fat cells in the body are replaced. This means that to
replace all the fat cells in our body, it takes 10 years. This is an
interesting side topic; Can our brain cells regenerate too? There has been a
scientific debate on this for a long time.
It is believed that most of the neurons in our brain are formed by the
time of our birth. Approximately 100 billion neurons. But recent research has
indicated that limited neurogenesis, that is, the regeneration of brain cells,
is seen in only two parts of the brain. One was the hippocampus, which is
involved in our memories, learning, and emotions.
And the 2nd is the olfactory bulb, which is responsible for smelling.
The other neurons of the brain do not regenerate and remain the same throughout
life. And apart from the brain, our spinal cord, heart, and joints show very
limited regenerative capacity. This is why if these regions are affected by
diseases or injuries, they can turn fatal.
On the contrary, there are many other body cells, that show rapid
regeneration. They are completely overhauled within a short time. Like our skin
cells. Our body sheds 500 million skin cells every day. Do you know what this
means? This means that our skin completely regenerates every 4 weeks. 4 weeks
is not even the fastest regeneration time.
The lining in our intestines can regenerate completely in just 5-7 days.
2 to 3 million red blood cells can be produced in a second. Their average
lifespan is only 120 days. Stem cells have the potential to replicate
themselves and self-renew. Just think about how amazing it is that our body
constantly tries to make us as good as new.
Constantly regenerates new cells. This is why if you fall down and get a
scratch, it's not a big deal because your skin cells regenerate. If you donate
your blood, the blood volume or the plasma is restored in just 24 hours. The
red blood cells you donate to others, will be replaced within 4 to 6 weeks.
This is all about replenishment, repair, and regeneration. But what if a
cell's genes get damaged? If you remember, in the evolution video, I explained
what DNA, genes, and gene mutations are. You can think of a gene as a program
with a detailed set of instructions for the cell. If a cell's genes change or
there is an error, it is called a mutation.
And because of this, cell growth can get disturbed. In such a situation,
our body has some options. There are some mechanisms in our body which fight
against gene damage. Like the P53 tumour suppressor gene, it is like a security
guard. The protein produced by this gene can repair damaged genes. Similarly,
there is a gene which works like a filter.
When a cell gets old or damaged, then the gene gives it the instruction
to die. This process is called Programmed Cell Death or Apoptosis. The cells
are literally told that their work is done and they need to die. There are some
other genes that work like a mechanic. They repair damaged genes. So, broadly
speaking, if there is any damage to our cells, our body has security guard
genes, filter genes, and mechanical genes.
These genes can either stop the growth of the damaged cells, repair
damaged cells, or remove them from the body. But the thing is that, what
happens if these genes are damaged? What if the security guard, filter, or the
mechanic gets damaged? Who will take over their work? Unfortunately, no one.
This situation is known as Cancer.
If a cell's gene gets damaged due to mutation and it starts growing
uncontrollably, then such a cell is called a Cancer Cell. Cancer cells are so
out of control that they pose a problem to the normal healthy cells too. These
cancer cells often have the ability to infiltrate other tissues. This is why
cancer begins in a single part of the body, but gradually, if it is not
stopped, it spreads to other parts of the body.
When a cancer cell from one body part spreads to other parts of the
body, this process is called Metastasis. The normal functioning of our body
gets completely disrupted because of this. At the end of the video, we'll talk
about the exact reasons behind such gene damages and how can we prevent them.
Now let's talk about treatment.
The most famous treatment of cancer is Chemotherapy. The process of
killing cancer cells using a powerful chemical. This process is known as
Chemotherapy. The biggest problem with this process is that though these
powerful chemicals kill the cancer cells along with it, they kill some good
healthy cells too.
Chemotherapy chemicals target those cells which are in the middle of the
process of division. So, the fast-regenerating healthy cells of the body are
also attacked along with the cancer cells. This is why people who are
undergoing chemotherapy often become bald. Because our hair follicle cells are
fast-regrowing cells.
Also, as I said that the cells in our intestines regrow rapidly. So
during chemotherapy, there are digestive problems, like vomiting and diarrhoea.
Apart from this, our bone marrow cells are also destroyed. Bone marrow is the
soft spongy tissue found in our bones. One is the yellow bone marrow, where the
stem cells turn into fat, cartilage, or bone cells.
Then there is the red bone marrow, the blood stem cells that turn into
red blood cells, white blood cells or platelets. As I said, our blood cells are
fast regrowing cells, so they get damaged due to chemotherapy. Anaemia can
occur due to the lack of red blood cells. Haemoglobin level often drops.
Platelets help in blood clotting.
When we get hurt or have a wound, they come and heal that wound. But if
we have insufficient platelets, it will lead to excessive bleeding. White blood
cells help with our immunity. If we catch a cold, they help us fight back. But
because of chemotherapy, if there are insufficient white blood cells, the
chances of contracting other diseases increase significantly.
That is why doctors suggest that during chemotherapy, the patient needs
a balanced, nutritious diet. They need to sleep well, stay away from stress,
wash hands regularly, wear masks, use good hygiene to avoid bacterial and viral
infections regular exercise becomes very important. During Bollywood actor
Sanjay Dutt's cancer treatment, his oncologist Dr.
Sewanti Limaye said that even on the days when he received chemotherapy,
he could be found exercising on a treadmill. He used to exercise for an hour.
Maybe that's why he could recover so well. Now, let's assume that cancer cells
die due to chemotherapy. But the question is, the healthy blood cells that have
been destroyed, how can that be restored? For this, we need a stem cell
transplant.
Also known as the bone marrow transplant. This is a treatment option for
patients with blood cancer and blood disorders. In some cases, the patient is
given their own healthy stem cells. Such cases are known as Autologous Stem
Cell Transplant. From an arm, the patient's blood is withdrawn and sent to an
apheresis machine, the stem cells are separated in it, and the remaining blood
is returned via the other arm.
Cancer cells are eliminated with chemotherapy and then the stem cells
are returned. In many cases, another donor is needed because the patient's body
does not have enough bone marrow. There aren't many healthy blood cells. Such
cases are known as Allogeneic Stem Cell Transplant. Just like it is necessary
to match the blood group for receiving someone's blood, similarly, when
receiving someone's stem cells, the HLA Typing needs to match.
The Human Leukocyte Antigen Typing. Without going into too much detail,
know that HLA is an important part of the immune system. The probability of a
perfect HLA typing match with your siblings is only 25%. It can never match
your parents, because one part of it comes from one of your parents, and the
other from the other parent.
So if there is no match with your siblings, then you have to get an HLA
typing matched with an unrelated person. And the chance of getting a perfect
match is very low. 1 out of 100,000. In the world, for every 100,000 people,
there will be only one person with whom your HLA type will match. So how can
one find matching donors in such cases? Friends, here comes the role of the
Stem Cell Registry, DKMS.
This is a global non-profit organisation whose tagline is 'We Delete
Blood Cancer.' They have created a worldwide database. From this database, a
donor was found for Chirag. Chirag, whose story I told you at the beginning of
this video. This donor was Roman Semenskiy, he is natively from Russia, and has
been settled in Germany since 2005.
Roman is a precision mechanic but likes to do kickboxing. Once his
kickboxing team donated blood. Roman has also been donating blood since his
school days, so he joined them. They were asked if they would like to give a
swab sample. A swab sample is taken from the inside of the cheek. Roman agreed
to it. About a year after giving his swab sample, DKMS contacted Roman.
He was told that his HLA typing matched someone. He was eligible to
donate his stem cells. For Roman, knowing about the recipient was not
important. Rather, the only important fact was that, his donation would save
someone's life. He agreed to it and donated his stem cells to Chirag. Apart
from our bone marrow, stem cells are found in our peripheral blood too.
That is, the blood running in our heart, arteries, veins, and
capillaries. Stem cell donation might sound like a major procedure, but it's
actually a simple procedure of 3-4 hours. To donate stem cells, you just have
to go to the nearest centre. and the rest of the process is as simple as blood
platelet donation.
The only difference is that when your blood is taken out via your arm,
the blood is first sent to a machine where the stem cells are separated. And
then the blood is sent back to your body. Basically, only the stem cells are
taken. And the blood content is returned to your body. This process is called
PBSC, Peripheral Blood Stem Cell Method.
And as we know, stem cells can regenerate themselves, so after some
time, the body can easily regenerate the stem cells. Similarly, Roman saved
Chirag's life through stem cell donation. Chirag could then be completely
healthy. After Chirag recovered, he wrote a letter to Roman, which brought
Roman and his wife to tears.
In his letter, Chirag called Roman his brother and a hero. Roman said
that he has a younger brother, who is actually the same age as Chirag. This
year, in May, the two met for the first time. Friends, you too can save
someone's life like this. You can become a godsend for someone. If all the
viewers of this video register, we can fight blood cancer.
I hope that none of you have blood cancer or blood disorder, and may you
never contract it. But you can still find out your HLA Typing. It might help
someone if you do so. Click on the link in the description or the pinned
comment to get to the online form. Fill in your basic details in the form, like
your name, age, and address.
Within a few days of registering, you will receive a free swab kit. You
will get 3 clean sterilised buccal swabs, buccal swab envelope, consent form
and an instruction sheet. You would need to follow the instructions on the
instruction sheet, to take your swab sample. Basically, you would need to rub
your inner cheek with it.
Sign the consent form and place the it with the sample form in the given
envelope. and then request a reverse pickup using the method shown on the
screen. Your sample will be used to identify your HLA Type, And the entire
process would take about 40 days. After this, you will receive an email from
DKMS, on successfully registering with the World Stem Cell Donor database.
If you want to know your HLA type, you can email donor@dkms-bmst.org. If
your HLA type matches with a blood cancer patient, you will get a call for stem
cell donation. The possibility of getting a call is very low. It may take a
week to a year to get a call. Or you may never get any call. If no one needs
your HLA type.
But if you get a call for a donation, it would be up to you whether you
are comfortable with the donation or not. This is a voluntary process. At that
moment, you can decide whether you want to donate your stem cells or not. But
the entire process is completely free. You don't need to pay for any of it.
The DKMS NGO bears all costs. Now let's come to the reasons for gene
damage. What do some cells get gene damage? There are 3 main reasons. The first
is Inherited Mutation. If you are born with a mutated gene. This usually
happens when you inherit a damaged gene from your parents. In some cases, it
can also happen if the mutated gene developed while you were an embryo.
Out of the total cancer cases in the world, 5-10% of the cases are due
to inherited mutated genes. That means that these genes were with the patient
since they were born. The second reason is age. With age, the genes start to
wear out. That's why there are more cancer cases in elderly people. Look at
this report from Cancer Research UK.
The cancer cases between 2017 to 2019 were studied, 90% of these cases,
were in people aged 50 or more. With age how many people out of 100,000 will
have cancer? You can see this incidence in this graph. You can see the curve
going up. And the maximum incidence is seen in the interval of 85 to 89 years.
That means the most chance of getting cancer is at the age of 80-90.
This is because gene damage keeps building up with time. A person may
die young due to other factors like dengue or malaria, or they live a long life
to end up as a cancer patient. This is why cancer is seen more in developed
countries compared to developing countries, because in developed countries the
incidence of other diseases is low.
People live longer and if they live longer then the risk of gene damage
increases. So, unfortunately, the two reasons I have told you till now, nothing
can be done about either of them. The genes you inherited, are already in you.
You can't change anything now. And you will continue to age as long as your
live, you can't stop it.
But the third reason, we can do a lot about it. These are lifestyle
causes. Look at the 2017 analysis by the American Cancer Society. The good news
is that 42% of cancer cases are preventable because they are cause due to
lifestyle factors. 19% of cancer cases all over the world, are because of
smoking. 5.6% are due to alcohol.
So it is absolutely clear that alcohol and smoking should never be a
part of your life. Second, if you are overweight or obese, get your weight in
the right zone. Because look at this, 7.8% of cancer cases are due to obesity.
How can you reduce your weight? If you want a detailed scientific guide for
this, then I have made this video, with a detailed, step-by-step approach,
which explains exactly how you can do it.
Third: UV radiation, around 4.7% of cases are due to UV radiation. The
harmful ultraviolet rays of the sun. In the afternoon, check the UV index on
your weather app. If it is higher than 5, then the ultraviolet rays can be
damaging to your skin. The ultraviolet rays penetrate your skin and damage your
DNA. They damage the genes which then leads to skin cancer.
Tanning or getting sunburnt repeatedly is a sign of UV radiation. And it
is very harmful. There are two ways to avoid it. First, don't go out in the sun
from 10 am to 4 pm. During this time the UV index is the highest, especially in
the summer. It's not as high in the winter. So, enjoy the sun in the early
morning or late evening.
And second, if you actually want to go out in the sun during this time,
it is important to wear sunscreen. Fourth, around 5% of all cancer cases are
due to physical inactivity and poor diet. Remove processed food and added sugar
from your diet and include different types of colourful vegetables, fruits,
berries, nuts, seeds, herbs, whole grains, beans, milk, eggs, etc.
Packaged food often contains such chemicals that are carcinogenic and
increase the risk of getting cancer. But often these things are discovered
after a long time. Like in the bread video, I talked about potassium bromate, a
famous additive which was added to bread and how it was used for a long time
all over the world and it was discovered only in the last 10-20 years that it
is actually carcinogenic.
The bread manufacturers promised that they won't use it going forward.
But what about what you ate till now? After Tamil Nadu and Goa, Karnataka has
now banned artificial food colouring. It was seen that in kababs the colours
Sunset Yellow and Carmoisine were being used. Sunset Yellow is a chemical that
when used in the European Union, comes with a label on the packet with a health
warning related to children.
On the CSPI website, you will find a long list of such chemicals that
were previously permitted, but were later banned by the USA. Like in 2018,
styrene, myrcene, and benzophenone were banned. So the safest option is to not
eat packaged food, and to eat natural food, fresh food, at local places.
Physical activity and an active lifestyle is important.
Keep doing regular exercise, which includes stretching, cardio, and
strength training, all three forms of exercises. Stretching is very obvious, in
which you stretch your muscles. Cardio means the exercises like running or
swimming where your heart beats increases and strength training done by lifting
weights.
Then comes the angle of environmental exposure, air pollution and many
pesticides which are used despite being carcinogens. In your working
environment, is benzene, asbestos, vinyl chloride or arsenic being used?
Because according to the International Agency for Research on Cancer, all of
these fall under the category of human carcinogens.
Cancer can be caused by the exposure to pesticides and fertilisers. You
can't control air pollution, but you limit your exposure as much as possible.
Then comes another major factor, which, especially in developing countries, is
responsible for 20-25% of the cancer cases. Viruses. That's right. Different
types of viruses can also cause cancer.
Like the Hepatitis B virus, Hepatitis C virus, HIV virus, Human Herpes
virus, Human T Lymphotropic virus, Merkel cell polyomavirus, HPV virus. There
is a simple solution to protect yourself against these, take the vaccines
recommended by the doctor. Get the vaccine for Hepatitis B, the Hepatitis C
vaccine. Often, these vaccines are given in childhood.
The HPV vaccine is new. It is necessary to get this vaccine to protect
yourself from the HPV virus. So, friends, keep these in mind. If you follow
these points properly, it will reduce the risk of cancer for you and your
family to a great extent. And I told you how we can help the patients suffering
from blood cancer.
Go and register with DKMS today. The link is in the description below.
By doing this, you can give hope to millions of blood cancer patients.
September is also called Blood Cancer Awareness Month. This is why I made this
video in September. And now, if you want to know the real secret of the people
who live long, healthy lives, and what can you learn from such people, I have
explained it in this video.
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