What is the difference between the types of radiation that cause cancer and the types of radiation used to treat cancer?
In: Other
Radiation causes damage to DNA. There a genes that control the cell cycle and cell growth called oncogenes. If these genes get damaged, cells can keep dividing and dividing until you have a tumor. But most of the time radiation will just kill a cell or have no effect. If you get lots of radiation exposure over time, the chance of it damaging an oncogene goes up, so that’s how radiation causes cancer. However very intense focused radiation can be used to kill tumors because it is so damaging to cells.
Latest Answers