Cancer is a disease that target the human cells. Cells make up all living things, including the human body. There are millions and millions of cells in our bodies. Cancer begins when cells that are not normal, grow and spread very quickly. These cells grow, divide and they stop growing.
Here is a glimpse of a few of the programs that are airing in March on ThinkBright in honor of Cancer Awareness Month:
Cancer Story: What Is Cancer? - Monday, March 5 at 9:00 PM
Cancer research and treatment is at the beginning of a whole new era of targeted, molecular treatments. What Is Cancer? sets the stage for understanding this. Using re-enactment, graphics and interviews, this program presents a clear, basic explanation of how normal cells behave and cancer cells begin, illustrated by following a hypothetical cancer patient through diagnosis and treatment.
Cancer Story: Voices - Monday, March 12 at 9:00 PM
Voices, presents the reality of life with cancer-told by cancer patients themselves. A 28-year old woman is successfully treated for breast cancer, but then must deal with her physician's advice that she not bear children. A young boy with leukemia and his family recount his three-year journey of treatment. A 54-year-old man with both Hodgkin's lymphoma and lung cancer goes through radiation and chemotherapy, supported by the love and humor of his wife.
Cancer Story: New Directions - Monday, March 19 at 9:00 PM
New Directions, explores promising new treatments at various stages of development, and explains how new therapies are developed and tested through clinical trials. The program begins by looking at Gleevec, a drug that was "fast-tracked" through the Food and Drug Administration's approval process when it showed remarkable success in treating leukemia. The program also talks to Dartmouth scientists developing a cancer vaccine to stimulate the body's immune system to attack colon cancer.
Cancer Story: Prevention and Screening - Monday, March 26 at 9:00 PM
Prevention and Screening, looks at ways to detect and "predict" cancer, and the decisions people are making with that information. A 54-year-old woman who carries a rare breast cancer gene tells about her experience with cancer and the choices she made in the hope of preventing its recurrence. Two men talk about their very different responses to a positive PSA test for prostate cancer. And the effects of environment on cancer, and the changes each of us can make to reduce our risk, are also discussed.
For more information on this and other programs available on ThinkBright, visit
www.thinkbright.org.