Are all the different cancers really that different or is it all just cancer and we just specify where it formed?
In: Biology
Cancer describes the class of diseases caused by a multitude of different mutations that cause cells to grow uncontrolled and without normal limitations. Most cancers are caused by more than one mutation, since your cells actually have quite a few protective and diagnostic measures to prevent cancer, or at least kill themselves if they become cancerous. You need mutations in growth genes and cancer control genes to get cancer (this is a broad generalization).
Beyond these basic factors, every cancer is different. The mutations that cause a specific cancer might be drastically different from a another cancer, even in two people with the same type of cancer.
Because the cells responsible are your own, they can be affected by all sorts of aspects of your biology, such as your diet, metabolism, activity, etc. Where the cancer formed is important because different types of cells have different abilities, and certain parts of your body are more important. Kidney cancer? You might just remove the affected kidney. Brain cancer? Can’t just remove the brain.
Tl;dr: cancers are extremely diverse in both their causes, effects, and susceptibilities to treatments. Cancer is more a class of diseases that share some general characteristics (just like viral or bacterial infections have general similarities and treatments) than a specific disease. This is why the “cure for cancer” is such a big deal; it’s kinda like searching for the “universal vaccine” or “ubiquitous antibiotic.”
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