In my project I created 4 stages of cancer development out of cupcakes in this order: The first cupcake (blue genetic material is a normal cell, the second cupcake is a mutated cell that is not yet cancerous, the third step of cupcakes (2 cupcakes) are malignant or cancerous cells that have undergone division, and the final stage is a large group of malignant cancerous cells that compose the tumor. Mutations in previously healthy cells can then turn these cells into precancerous cells that will form into a cancerous disease over an undefined period of time (cancer does not occur in a single event, it is developed over time; case to case basis). The mutated/damaged cells will lose the ability to form regular tissues, and this is when tumors are formed.

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  1. Ethan’s project recreates the four stages of cancer development utilizing cupcakes. The project starts with one healthy cell (identified by the blue icing). The next cupcake represents a mutated cell that most likely did not enter apoptosis as it aged. This increases the likelihood of mutation which can cause the cell to reproduce abnormally and more rapidly. Clusters of these mutated cells can become malignant (cancerous), which is depicted in the cupcakes.
    Cancer is not just one disease but a term for a disease process. It is characterized by rapid abnormal cell division that forms tumors. Not all tumors are cancerous (benign). The malignant cells are not responding to the body’s signals to stop reproducing and can infiltrate other organ systems (metastasis). Cancers are typically named for the tissues that were primarily effected.
    There are many potential treatments for cancer that include radiation, surgery, chemotherapy, and hormone therapy. What all these treatments share is a goal of removing or destroying the malignant cells. However, all of these treatments come with limitations. A tumor’s size and location may make surgical removal impossible. Radiation and chemotherapies damage healthy cells as well as the malignant cells and the side effects can be even worse than the cancer symptoms Cancer researchers are constantly working on new treatments. Some of these treatments target the specific proteins associated with molecular pathways that would target cancer cells and leave healthy cells undamaged.
    The elements contained in this project are baking & decorating.

    Fred Koski

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