A 63 year old man was presented with adenocarcinoma of the left lung after being treated with chemotherapy. When the history of his illness was taken it was found that his cancer developed in three marked stages. In the first stage, his immune system was chronically weakened by the recurrent attacks of asthma from which he had been suffering since childhood although he had been taking courses of antibiotic drugs and using inhalers from time to time during the phases of acute attacks.
In the second stage, came the insertion of carcinogenic metal into his lung system. Professionally, he had been working in the mining areas of chromium, aluminium and copper metals for a period of twelve years. As a result, he had been exposed to dust particles of carcinogenic metals in his work place. Some of the carcinogenic particles might not have been expelled by the lungs system and got deeply entrenched into his left lung.
In an effort to expel the carcinogenic metals by the body, a chronic inflammatory condition would have prevailed in the cells clustered around the carcinogen. First gene mutation would have occurred in a cell in that cluster because of repeated interaction of the carcinogen with the DNA material.
In the third stage, came the impact of his chain smoking of cigarettes which he used to consume more than
twenty cigarettes a day for several years. The cigarette smokes with large number of carcinogenic chemicals would have reached the inflammatory site of the cells around the carcinogen and caused more mutation in the cell. In this manner, progressively mutated genes could initiate and enhance uncontrolled cell divisions to create his lung cancer.
In the second stage, came the insertion of carcinogenic metal into his lung system. Professionally, he had been working in the mining areas of chromium, aluminium and copper metals for a period of twelve years. As a result, he had been exposed to dust particles of carcinogenic metals in his work place. Some of the carcinogenic particles might not have been expelled by the lungs system and got deeply entrenched into his left lung.
In an effort to expel the carcinogenic metals by the body, a chronic inflammatory condition would have prevailed in the cells clustered around the carcinogen. First gene mutation would have occurred in a cell in that cluster because of repeated interaction of the carcinogen with the DNA material.
In the third stage, came the impact of his chain smoking of cigarettes which he used to consume more than
twenty cigarettes a day for several years. The cigarette smokes with large number of carcinogenic chemicals would have reached the inflammatory site of the cells around the carcinogen and caused more mutation in the cell. In this manner, progressively mutated genes could initiate and enhance uncontrolled cell divisions to create his lung cancer.
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