According to WHO estimates, cancer is the second leading cause of death around the world, and the cases are only on the rise. Between 2010 and 2019, there was a 26% rise in global cancer incidence, making it perhaps one of the deadliest and fastest-growing diseases in human history.
While there’s still no cure for it, it’s important to remember that those numbers could be far higher. Thanks to the continuous efforts of scientists, doctors, surgeons, and other specialists working in the field, there have been many breakthrough treatments – like immunotherapy and chemotherapy – that have come together to improve the lives of countless patients around the world.Â
10. Halsted’s Mastectomy
Named after its inventor William Stewart Halsted, Halsted’s Mastectomy was developed in the late-19th century. It revolutionized breast cancer treatment, as Halsted’s approach was a radical departure from previous methods. It involved the complete removal of the breast, underlying muscles, and adjacent lymph nodes to ensure the complete removal of the tumor. It was a revolutionary idea at the time, as the procedure didn’t just remove the tumor, but also any remaining cancerous cells that might have spread to nearby lymph nodes.Â
By taking this approach, Halsted believed that he could improve long-term outcomes and reduce the risk of disease recurrence. This technique laid the foundation for modern breast cancer surgery, as it focussed on the careful dissection and preservation of healthy tissues. While the procedure has undergone many modern refinements over time, the fundamental principles of Halsted’s Mastectomy remain influential in the field of cancer research.
9. X-Rays And Radiation Therapy
The discovery of X-rays by Wilhelm Conrad Roentgen in 1895 would prove to be a breakthrough event in the field, as it directly led to the development of other modern techniques for cancer treatment. Emil Grubbe, a Chicago chemist and physician, was one of the early pioneers in using X-ray radiation to treat cancer. In 1896, he successfully performed radiation therapy on Rose Lee, a patient suffering from recurrent breast cancer. This was perhaps the first documented instance of using radiation therapy to treat cancer in history, and there would be no looking back.
Grubbe’s experiments had a profound impact on the field of medical radiation therapy. His treatments involved placing lead sheets to shield healthy tissues from the harmful rays, and focusing the X-ray radiation on the tumor site. While these procedures were relatively long by modern standards – each lasting about an hour – they were still a huge leap for the time. Grubbe’s early work with X-rays paved the way for all future research in radiation therapy.
8. Discovery Of Radium
In 1898, Polish physicist and chemist Marie Curie discovered the highly-radioactive element called radium and forever changed the field of cancer treatment as we know it. Early experiments with radium revealed its potential to destroy diseased cells, leading to its widespread use in patients suffering from various types of skin cancers for many years.
Before the discovery of radium, surgical removal of tumors used to be the standard treatment for treating cancer. This approach often proved painful and ineffective, with limited consideration for the rapid growth of new tumors. Radium therapy – also sometimes called ‘Curie Therapy’ after Marie Curie – emerged as a viable alternative, delivering targeted radiation directly to the cancerous cells to eliminate them.Â
On the other hand, the introduction of radioactivity to cancer treatment came with its own set of risks, like the absence of proper safety procedures to protect against radiation at that time. There was also a general lack of understanding of radium’s properties, which resulted in health issues like anemia, cataracts, fractured teeth, and even cancer.Â
7. Mustard Gas And Chemotherapy
While mustard gas initially came into mass use as a deadly chemical agent during the First World War, it has also played a pivotal role in the larger history of cancer treatment. Researchers in the early 1900s, like Dr. Edward and Helen Krumbhaar, began studying the effects of mustard agents and their potential medical applications. By the 1940s, scientists transformed mustard gas into substances that could be used for cancer chemotherapy, specifically sulfur mustards and nitrogen mustards.Â
During World War II, extensive research was done on chemical warfare agents of all kinds, including mustard gas, to better understand their harmful effects and develop countermeasures. The researchers also drew from wartime experience, as accidental exposure to the agent on the frontline revealed its effects on blood cells. Subsequent trials proved the effectiveness of nitrogen mustard in regressing existing tumors, which set the stage for further breakthroughs in chemotherapy in the coming years.
6. Environmental Factors
While we now know that environmental factors can cause cancer, it hasn’t always been common knowledge. The first scientist to link environmental factors with the disease was Percivall Pott, who – in 1775 – wrote a book about how workers in London that were exposed to soot from the chimneys were at a higher risk of scrotal cancer. Pott observed an unusually high incidence of skin sores on the scrotums of chimney sweepers, leading him to identify an environmental factor, soot, as the cancer-causing agent.Â
This discovery was a milestone in the history of cancer research, as it not only revealed the role of occupational exposure in carcinogenesis , but also contributed to the understanding of diseases caused by infections like Pott disease.Â
5. P53 Protein
The discovery of the p53 protein in the 1970s revolutionized our understanding of how cancer works. First identified by independent researchers in 1984, p53 is a tumor-suppressor protein found within our cells that plays a crucial role in preventing the development and progression of cancer throughout our lifetimes. It acts as a guardian of the genome, responding to DNA damage – which may lead to cancer – by halting cell growth or inducing cell death.Â
Over the years, scientists have uncovered many functions of the p53 protein, describing it instead as a network. In addition to its role in DNA repair and cell death, it’s also involved in processes like metabolism and immunity. Years of better understanding the complex mechanisms driven by p53 has led to many major advancements in cancer research and potential treatments.Â
4. Discovery Of The Role Of Viruses
In 1910, Peyton Rous discovered a filterable agent, later named the Rous sarcoma virus, that was causing cancer in chickens. On further experimentation, he found that freezing, drying, or radiation didn’t diminish the virus’s cancer-causing ability, and that the infected chickens produce antibodies, leading him to develop his viral theory of cancer.Â
In 1934, Rous also found a virus responsible for warts in jackrabbits that could later develop into cancerous tumors. This newfound focus on viruses as a potential agent of cancer led to further discoveries by him and other researchers in the field. One of them was that certain viruses could permanently alter the DNA of host cells without killing them, resulting in the growth of cancer at a later stage.Â
3. Immunotherapy
William Coley is often referred to as the ‘Father of Immunotherapy’ due to his contributions to the field of cancer research in the late 19th century. In 1891, Coley attempted to treat bone cancer by utilizing the immune system. He observed tumor regression in sarcoma patients after infecting them with mixtures of live and inactivated bacteria.Â
This new strategy provided early evidence of cancer treatment with the body’s own immune system, and Coley’s work laid the foundation for all future advancements in cancer immunotherapy. Subsequent discoveries in the field, like the discovery of T cells and their role in the immune system, reignited academic interest in using the immune system to fight cancer, leading to further insights and discoveries.Â
2. Hormone Therapy
Over the years, hormone therapy has played a major role in cancer research and treatment, particularly in the areas of prostate and breast cancer. It was only made possible after the discoveries of Charles Huggins, a Canadian-born American surgeon and urologist, who was the first researcher to prove the influence of hormones on certain types of cancer.Â
Huggins demonstrated that prostate cancer could be affected by hormones, and that inhibiting hormone production through castration or introducing female sex hormones could counteract the disease. This breakthrough led to the rapid adoption of hormone treatment for prostate and other types of cancer, including breast cancer. For his work, Charles Huggins – along with Peyton Rous – received the Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine in 1966.
1. Mapping Of The Human Genome
The mapping of the human genome was completed in 2003, giving us – for the first time – access to the entire set of DNA instructions found in a human cell. It was a breakthrough event for the medical world, as doctors and medical researchers now had access to the fundamental knowledge needed to understand genetic mutations and their role in diseases, especially cancer. With this new understanding, personalized therapies could now be developed to target specific genetic changes in cancer cells.
Thanks to the Human Genome Project, researchers discovered that some breast cancer cells had an altered HER-2 gene, which led to the production of a growth-promoting protein. Over the years, similar genetic changes were found in other types of cancer, leading to more advanced targeted therapies and personalized medicine for specific diseases. Unlike traditional chemotherapy and radiation, targeted therapies offer longer-lasting treatment effects with minimal side effects. The ability to sequence the DNA in cancer cells and compare it to the human genome also allowed for a more comprehensive categorization of tumors.