Health Education for Cancer Patients and Their Families

For cancer cells to spread to nearby tissues or other parts of the body, they must be able to bypass the body’s internal barriers. In the early stages of cancer, benign tumors form, and the cancer cells do not have the ability to penetrate the surrounding tissue. As the disease progresses and transforms into a malignant tumor, cancer cells may produce enzymes called proteases that help them break through the extracellular matrix, tissue boundaries, and connections between surrounding healthy cells, facilitating the spread of cancer cells to nearby tissues. In later stages, some cancer cells may even break through the body’s barriers, such as blood vessels and lymphatic vessels, leading to the spread of cancer to other areas and organs. This is known as metastasis.