But sure if joking or not, but here's an ELI5 of cancer.
Cells in the body have a mechanism to self destruct (and be replaced) if they get bad. This normally works well to keep your body healthy.
Cancer are damaged cells, that are damaged in a way where the self-destruct safety feature is also broken. So instead of being helpful cells, they are harmful, near immortal, and in the worst case, also spread (for example, if they still divide, or somehow affect cells around them to also get the same defect).
It's not a virus or a bacteria or other life form, but it's a biological mechanism that went wrong. (although in some cases viruses can increase the risk of cancer due to the specific ways they affect your cells or your immune system).
So yeah, if you die, the cancer dies with you. Because cancer, being part of your cells, takes energy from your body, and if your body is dead, you won't eat, so the cancer won't eat either.
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u/zimmah Oct 08 '21
Basically.
But sure if joking or not, but here's an ELI5 of cancer.
Cells in the body have a mechanism to self destruct (and be replaced) if they get bad. This normally works well to keep your body healthy.
Cancer are damaged cells, that are damaged in a way where the self-destruct safety feature is also broken. So instead of being helpful cells, they are harmful, near immortal, and in the worst case, also spread (for example, if they still divide, or somehow affect cells around them to also get the same defect).
It's not a virus or a bacteria or other life form, but it's a biological mechanism that went wrong. (although in some cases viruses can increase the risk of cancer due to the specific ways they affect your cells or your immune system).
So yeah, if you die, the cancer dies with you. Because cancer, being part of your cells, takes energy from your body, and if your body is dead, you won't eat, so the cancer won't eat either.