Cancer ‘avalanche effect’ refuted
Cancer is due to changes in the DNA of cells, which causes them to divide in an uncontrolled manner. It is also true that the cancer cells in certain common tumours, such as in colon cancer, can have over 100 chromosomes instead of the 46 chromosomes normally present in a human cell. But does a single, initial change in the number of chromosomes set off a sequence of unstoppable changes that lead to cancer? The answer to this question is important; in order to ensure that cancer research is on the right track…