How does cancer actually kill someone?

How does cancer spread through the body?

Cancer usually begins with one tumor, but it can spread to other organs if not removed. This video breaks down how cancer moves to these new areas and why some organs are more likely to get infected than others.

When is someone actually dead?

Death is a process, not a sudden flip of a switch. Technology can now interrupt this process at various stages, begging the question of when exactly death happens in the dying process. This 33-minute podcast episode explores this question and the...

Cancer is typically broken down into four stages influenced by tumor size, the presence of cancerous cells in the lymph nodes, and the extent to which the malignancy has spread to other organs in the body.

What is immunotherapy and how does it work?

Immunotherapy is a type of treatment that harnesses the body's immune system to combat cancer. This video explainer from the American Cancer Society discusses various types of immunotherapies and their roles in targeting cancer cells. Still a new and quickly evoliving field, immunotherapy represents a significant advancement in cancer treatment and offers new options for patients.

Metastasis: When cancer cells begin to travel through the body

Metastatic cancer starts in one part of the body and moves to another over time. This is known as metastasis. Such cancers are much more harmful since they attack multiple parts of the body, adapting new metabolic changes to suit the various environments found throughout a body.

Cancer is a group of diseases characterized by the uncontrolled growth of abnormal, mutated cells that can spread throughout the body.

Chemotherapy is a cocktail of powerful drugs that slows cancer by interfering with cell division.

The immune system is in a constant fight to detect and eliminate cellular mutations.

Immunotherapy focuses on boosting the immune system to fight cancer

The immune system detects and destroys abnormal cells, curbing the growth of many cancers. Immunotherapy works to boost the body’s immune system to target and kill cancer cells. There are many ways to accomplish this, including adaptive cell therapy, checkpoint inhibitors, vaccines, and monoclonal antibodies.

The difference between standard cancer treatments and emerging immunotherapies

If you've ever wondered what the difference was between immunotherapy and chemotherapy, this short video takes you through the steps. Briefly, chemotherapy attacks cancer in tumor cells directly, while immunotherapy encourages your immune system to fight it. There's more to it than that, but this delightful two-and-a-half-minute video provides a good primer.

Frequently asked questions on immunotherapy

The Cancer Research Institute takes a close look at immunotherapy and its potential for treating cancer. Immunotherapy teaches the patient's own immune system to recognize and fight cancer cells. It's especially promising as an alternative for cancers that resist chemotherapy and radiation treatment. Have all your questions about the process and its promise here.

What is cancer bioengineering?

While new treatments for cancer are under continuous development, researchers are increasingly using engineering principles to find wholly new strategies to combat the disease. Directions include nanoparticle drug delivery, advanced imaging tools, developing new materials to interact with cells, tissue engineering, robotic surgeries, and more. Such interdisciplinary efforts are expected to unlock new tools and therapies beyond traditional drug formulation.

Explore this interactive tool from the National Cancer Institute to calculate your risk of dying from various causes, including cancer.

The term 'cancer' is roughly 3,000 years old and derives from the Greek word for 'crab,' which may refer to how a malignant tumor can feel like a hard shell.

Patients are a part of the progress

Navigating a cancer diagnosis can be terrifying and overwhelming. There is a robust community of patient advocates dedicated to prevention and diagnosis, research and clinical trials, legislation, needs of individual cancer types, among others. See how patient advocacy improves cancer research leading to improved treatment options and patient care.

Explore the National Cancer Institute's archive on cancer treatments, including complementary and alternative medicine.

Prostate cancer is both manageable and the second-deadliest cancer for men

One in 44 men in the US will die from prostate cancer, while one in eight will be diagnosed with it. Commonly viewed as the safest cancer to have, screenings can save lives—but they can also cause complications for otherwise benign cases of the disease.

An Alzheimer's patient discusses her condition with children

Alzheimer's is a deadly disease that profoundly changes a person's abilities and personality, which makes it difficult to explain to kids. Responding to potentially uncomfortable questions with honesty (and relatable imagery) about the costs and nature of the disease goes a long way in fostering understanding.

Large animals like giraffes and elephants have evolved unique cancer defenses.

There are hundreds of subtypes of cancer, making a universal cure nearly impossible.

Lung cancer advances are making a big difference

Lung cancer deaths are declining faster than new cases due to advances in treatment. The progress illustrates what is possible, even for a cancer that has long had a poor prognosis.

How is immunotherapy used to fight cancer?

The Dana-Farber Cancer Institute provides a delightful Science Illustrated animation explaining PD-1/PD-L1 immunotherapy and how it fights cancer. Briefly, the treatment helps T-cells recognize cancerous cells that would ordinarily be "disguised" by proteins and attack. The fight is made more fair and effective by immunotherapy and similar cancer treatments.

How Alzheimer's disease becomes fatal

Despite more than 100,000 people with Alzheimer's dying each year, the specific cause of death is not the disease itself. Often, secondary diseases arise from complications with the disease, including pneumonia, severe falls, malnutrition, or infection. Read more about the range of complications caused by Alzheimer's here.

Teaching immune cells to fight cancer

CAR T-cell therapy is a type of immunotherapy, which involves strengthening the immune system to attack cancer cells. Patient T cells, which manage immune responses and are responsible for killing pathogen-infected cells, are collected and re-engineered to produce surface-level proteins called chimeric antigen receptors. These CARs, now able to bind to specific proteins on cancer cell surfaces, are multiplied into the millions and infused back into the patient.

Physician teaches course on being a cancer patient

Stanford physician and professor Bryant Lin was diagnosed with stage four lung cancer, a terminal diagnosis. Despite its difficult implications for his life, Lin embraced the chance to teach his students from the unique perspective of a lung cancer patient. The course explored the journey from diagnosis to treatment; how to respect a patient's physical, emotional, and spiritual dimensions; and more.

Timeline of cancer research milestones

While cancer remains incurable, there's been so much progress in its treatment over the last two decades. Nature provides an abridged history of milestones and major triumphs in cancer research and treatment. Start in the year 2000, and see how much has changed in the first quarter of the new millennium

Explore the gap in what Americans die from versus news coverage on death causes

Top killers like heart disease, stroke, and liver disease, though they represent a significant burden nationally, are not often extensively covered in the media.

Using psychedelics to manage a cancer diagnosis

Dr. Roland Griffiths helped lead the revival of psychedelic research, often prescribing the use of psilocybin to address severe depression or anxiety in patients. This podcast explores how Griffiths leaned on his own career after being diagnosed with cancer and facing the prospect of death.

A deep dive into how a body decomposes

Dead bodies are, understandably, scary and unsettling. Learn about the fascinating process of decomposition that takes place in every human, and how its teeming with life.

Roughly 1 in 5 cancers are caused by viruses

About 20% of cancers are caused by viruses, with seven specific oncoviruses causing between 10% and 15% of cancers worldwide. These include human papillomavirus and hepatitis B and C viruses, which can lead to diseases such as cervical and liver cancer. Understanding the mechanisms of these viruses is crucial for prevention and treatment strategies.

Infertility is often not discussed, forcing women and families to grieve privately

Watch this podcast discussion from Weill Cornell Medicine about the emotional journey of infertility for couples and individuals and hear advice about how to navigate the feelings of loss of control, grief, anger, and despair, including suggested tips for supporting individuals struggling with infertility.

Breast, prostate, and lung cancer are the most common forms of cancer.

About 40% of cancer cases are linked to preventable risk factors

Maintaining a healthy weight, engaging in regular physical activity, and consuming a balanced diet can lower cancer risk. Research indicates that about 40% of US cancer cases are linked to preventable factors, including poor diet and inactivity. Understanding these mechanisms empowers individuals to adopt healthier lifestyles for cancer prevention.

The seven viruses that cause human cancers

Certain viruses have been linked to the development of human cancers. These viruses account for up to 20% of cancers worldwide, causing cancer by interacting with host proteins, proliferating within weak immune systems, and commandeering susceptible human cells. Unlike other viruses, human tumor viruses don't kill host cells, allowing them to establish persistent infections. The seven viruses include the Epstein-Barr Virus, the Human Papillomaviruses, and more.

A 40-something science journalist was getting more winded during workouts, and experiencing night sweats, forgetfulness and tiredness—she thought it was perimenopause, but these common symptoms turned out to be signs of her blood cancer.

America's top causes of death are heart disease, cancer, accidents, and stroke

Heart disease killed more than 680,000 people in 2023 and cancer killed around 613,000 people that year. Both causes of death are far above the next leading cause of death—accidents, which numbered around 223,000. Provisional data for 2024 indicates the leading causes of death remained the same.

Low cell division rates in heart cells make heart cancer particularly rare

The heart's location in the chest also offers protection from external cancer-causing factors. The disease affects about 3 in every 10,000 people, though most cases arise from metastasis from other body parts.

Chronic inflammation can cause cellular damage and could lead to cancer

Over time, this cellular defense system can inadvertently damage cells and tissues when it's in this heightened alarm mode over a prolonged period. This occurs because, when immune cells are sent somewhere without a true target, they may attack healthy cells and tissues.

See how CAR-T cell therapy works to help fight cancer

Short for chimeric antigen receptor T-cell therapy, CAR-T Cell Therapy helps augment the body's own ability to attack cancer cells. It's a cell-based gene therapy that alters the genes in a person's T cells—which are a type of immune cell—to help them beat back cancerous growths.

Explore more statistics about cancer

The American Cancer Society's Cancer Statistics Center estimates there will be more than 2 million new cancer cases and almost 620,000 cancer deaths in the US during the course of 2025. Breast, prostate, and lung cancers remain the most prevalent. This interactive tool provides detailed statistics on cancer incidence, mortality, and survival rates, allowing users to explore data by state, cancer type, demographics, and risk factors.

Thanatology is the study of death and dying.

What happens in a dying brain?

Near-death experiences usually happen during death or on the border of life and death when a person isn't understood to be conscious. This article details the science of what's going on with the brain during NDEs.

Can AI revolutionize cancer detection?

Scientists have developed a tool to evaluate the risk of lung cancer, the most deadly form of the disease. Named "Sybil," this AI program was trained using CT scans with clear cancer signs, followed by scans where cancer wasn’t obvious. The tool is able to review CT scan data to predict a patient's of developing a lung cancer within six years. See how it works here.

Overwork contributes to thousands of worker deaths

Can work really kill you? The World Health Organization and the International Labor Organization have estimated that long work hours contribute to thousands of death from strokes and heart attacks each year. This BBC article argues that the culture of overwork and burnout is leading to a public health crisis in desperate need of solutions.

What can psychedelics teach us about dying?

Psychedelics have made their way into the world of licensed mental healthcare, and the drugs have been proven to help people process and lessen anxiety and depression. What does this mean for people with terminal illnesses who are afraid of death?

Why don't we all have cancer?

The creation of a single cell produces 120,000 genetic mutations that can lead to cancer. This video investigates how our bodies proofread and autocorrect those mistakes.

Why death is caused by a dearth of ATP

Though people die from many causes, this video makes the case that a lack of adenosine triphosphate production in the body is what kills almost all of us. Without ATP, physiological processes grind to a halt, and organs stop functioning.

Watch what the Ebola virus does inside the body in order to spread and survive.

Cells become cancerous if checkpoints in the cell cycle are damaged

Before cells divide, a protein called p53 can halt the cell cycle if damaged DNA is identified, preventing the fault from propagating to daughter cells. If p53 and other tumor-suppressing molecules cannot function due to mutations or other instabilities, damage can accumulate over successive generations until nothing stops cells from dividing uncontrollably, creating tumors.

Genetic tests aren't always actionable, which is one reason genetic counselors are so vital

This podcast interview with a Harvard Medical School professor focused on cancer genetics and prevention discusses the specifics of genetic testing and insights and the challenges of processing the outcomes of the testing and what may be actionable—or not.