Question

Which of the following sentences are correct with respect to cancer?
I. The cells of malignant tumours divide erratically.
II. More than a million Indians suffer from cancer and a large number of them die from it annually.
III. They show a property called contact inhibition.
IV. Metastasis is the most feared property of malignant tumours.

• A. I, II and III
• B. II, III and IV
• C. I, II and IV
• D. I, III and IV

Answer 1

Answer: (C)

Cancer is one of the most dreaded diseases of human beings and is a major cause of death all over the globe. A tumour that spreads and eventually causes ill health and death are described as malignant, and this results from a breakdown of the regulatory mechanisms that govern normal cell behaviour. In the malignant tumours, the cells divide erratically and show the property of metastasis. Normal cells show a property called contact inhibition because contact with other cells inhibits their uncontrolled growth. Cancer cells appear to have lost this property. As a result of this, cancerous cells just continue to divide giving rise to masses of cells called tumours.