What is the connection between malignant neoplasms and crabs?

---

The more common term for malignant neoplasms, cancer, is Latin for crab, and the word "carcinogen," meaning a cancer-causing agent, comes from the Greek word for crab, "karkinos." What is the connection between these two seemingly unrelated things?
Cancer, both the disease and the astronomical constellation, derive from the Latin cancer or cancrum, meaning crab. The astrological sign, of course, is said to resemble a crab and the disease was so named by the ancient Greek physician Galen (129-200 A.D.) who noted the similarity between a certain type of tumor with a crab as well—the swollen veins around the tumor resembling the legs of a crab.

Old English adopted cancer directly from Latin and used it for a variety of spreading sores and ulcers. This early sense survives in the modern word canker. From c.1000 in a manuscript called Læce Boc (Leech Book), collected in Oswald Cockayne’s Leechdoms, Wortcunning, and Starcraft of Early England, Vol. II, 1865:

Gemeng wið þam dustum, clæm on ðone cancer.
(Mix with the dust, smear on the cancer.)

And from Wyclif’s 2 Timothy, 1382:

The word of hem crepith as a kankir

The word was being applied specifically to the disease we today call cancer by the beginning of the 17th century. From Philemon Holland’s translation of Pliny’s Historie of the World:

Cancer is a swelling or sore comming of melancholy bloud, about which the veins appeare of a blacke or swert colour, spread in manner of a Creifish clees.

The astronomical sense of cancer is from the Latin name for the constellation of the crab. The name was known to the Anglo-Saxons, but only as a Latin name and was not assimilated into English until the Middle English period. It appears in Ælfric’s De Temporibus Anni, written c.993, in a list of the constellations of the Zodiac:

Feorða • Cancer • þæt is Crabba
(Fourth, Cancer, that is the crab.)

The Anglicized name appears c.1391 in Chaucer’s Treatise on the Astrolabe:

In this heved of cancer is the grettist declinacioun northward of the sonne...this signe of cancre is clepid the tropik of Somer.
(At this first point (head) of cancer is the greatest declination northward of the sun…this sign of cancer is named the tropic of summer.)

(Source: Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd Edition)  (+ info)

What part of the brain do the neurosurgeons cut to produce a split brain and what is the function of this?

---

What part of the brain do the neurosurgeons cut to produce a split brain and what is the function of this part of the brain?Which hemisphere of the brain has superior language skills and mathematical skills? Which hemisphere of the brain is better at recognizing faces?
"Split brain" is produced by severing the corpus callosum, which connects the two hemispheres of the brain. Wikipedia actually has some good information about this here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Split-brain

  (+ info)

What is the difference between metastasized brain cancer and cancer that started in the brain?

---

My mother had lung cancer a year ago and although it has not returned, she now has a tumor in her brain the size of a dime. It is cancerous .... so what is the prognosis and what is the difference between this type of brain cancer (where it originated in the lungs) and brain cancer that originiates in the brain. Also, what is the prognosis?
Cancer originating in a particular organ for the first time is called Primary neoplasm.

Metastasis is its secondary spread through blood or lymph.

Prognosis really depends on histological type of the cancer but metastasis generally requires more aggressive treatment in the form of chemo & radio because it is wide-spread.

My best wishes are with your mother and you as her family in the battle against this cancer.  (+ info)

What happens in the brain when you lose consciousness?

---

So, what happens in the brain that neurons decide that the brain should cope with the problem without the human himself? I was in a car accident some time ago and i was unconscious for like 15 mins till the ambulance came. I lost consciousness when i fell from the bonnet to the ground and hit my head. Today i was wondering - how the brain decides that it needs to switch off? I suppose the conciousness and the changes of it is controlled by the medulla.. But is it the hit, the pain or the shock of the whole situation that makes the neurons decide what to do?
I'd like to hear a scientiffic explanation.

Oh, i just realized that it could be due to too heavy stimulation of the neurons or of too big number of neurons stimulated at once?

Thanks for everyone answering
You've pretty much figured out the answer. I can just underline what you've said already.

The process of taking day-to-day events and "storing" them where they can be accessed later is the job of the hippocampus. This area of the brain gets "tags" from various sensations that say, "Hey, this is something you'll want later".

The process of moving short-term, or "scratchpad" memory, into "long-term" memory is called _consolidation_.

When faced with an overwhelming stimulus, or one that has no context in which it can be placed, then the "tagging" and "consolidation" systems can become overwhelmed, or just not know what to do. No consolidation means no long-term memory of the event.

It is common, after an accident, to have what is called a "retrograde amnesia". The more severe the emotional trauma, the longer (in general) the period of amnesia for things *before* the event in question. So, a particularly nasty shock might result in amnesia for everything that happened that day.  (+ info)

What type of brain damage is a stroke likely to cause?

---

What is the usual type of brain damage that a stroke can cause? Is it likely to lose capacity for thought and problem solving skills? Also, is it possible for tissue damage to restore itself back to the level of functioning it was at before, as the brain regularly restores cells?
Damage and the subsequent problems with speech, language, and cognition rely entirely on the site and size of the lesion.
Tissue does not regenerate significantly enough to affect functional recovery, unfortunately.
Yes, it is entrirely possible to have damaged reasoning and problem-solving skills. Typically, in the absence of a language deficit, the lesion in that case would most likely be in the frontal lobe of the right cerebral hemisphere.  (+ info)

What brain disease is that where liquid bubbles come out of your nose and mouth?

---

Is it encephalitis? This happened to a puppy my brother or his friend stepped on, it was really sad. Watching the movie Cheronobyl heart has a baby with some brain condition and yellow-ish white liquid bubbles came from his nose and mouth when he would breathe.
Do you mean epilepsy (seizures)?  (+ info)

How serious is getting a swollen brain from Behcet's Disease? Will my brother be able to wake up?

---

How serious is getting a swollen brain from Behcet's Disease? My brother had a swollen brain after vomiting/fainting out of nowhere. He got surgery and after, doctors purposely put his brain to sleep (induced coma? I think). Doctors found out that what he has is Bechet's Disease. Is this disease serious? Will my brother be able to wake up? Will doctors wake him up?
Behçet's disease is an autoimmune disease that results from damage to blood vessels throughout the body, particularly veins. In an autoimmune disease, the immune system attacks and harms the bodies' own tissues. The exact cause of Behçet's disease is unknown. Most symptoms of the disease are caused by vasculitis (an inflammation of the blood vessels). Inflammation is a characteristic reaction of the body to injury or disease and is marked by four signs: swelling, redness, heat, and pain. Doctors think that an autoimmune reaction may cause the blood vessels to become inflamed, but they do not know what triggers this reaction. Under normal conditions, the immune system protects the body from diseases and infections by killing harmful "foreign" substances, such as germs, that enter the body. In an autoimmune reaction, the immune system mistakenly attacks and harms the body's own tissues. Behçet's disease is not contagious; it is not spread from one person to another. Behçet's disease affects each person differently. The four most common symptoms (as listed) are mouth sores, genital sores, inflammation inside of the eye, and skin problems. Inflammation inside of the eye (uveitis, retinitis, and iritis) occurs in more that half of those with Behçet's disease and can cause blurred vision, pain, and redness. Other symptoms may include arthritis, blood clots, and inflammation in the central nervous system and digestive organs.


Check out the website, its the offical site and should have some helpful info  (+ info)

What is the survival rate of patients who have brain surgery to remove a brain tumor?

---

My sister is scheduled for surgery on June 2 and she has 2 brain tumors and one is pressing against the brain causing her motor skills to deteriorate. She has had a very serious surgery before where part of her jawbone had to be removed. What are her chances of survival to have this brain tumor removed?
They are a lot higher than not having it removed. Statistics on survival are based on the kind of tumor it is and the grade which you do not mention. Brain tumors, cancerous or not, often recur.  (+ info)

What happens to your brain and body during a seizure?

---

I have had a seizure disorder my whole life. I had brain surgery a few years ago to stop them, but I get them now and then. I've been on many meds, but can somebody tell me what happens to your brain and body when a seizure is happening?
When you get a seizure, the neurons in your brain start firing at unpredictable intervals, thus making you do and think things that aren't normal, and that are sometimes hazardous.  (+ info)

What part of the brain is at the top right of someones forehead?

---

A few years back I got into a car accident, and this part of my brain was injured. I never got to looking up what part it is, but I know it's the frontal lobe. Is there a more specific part of the brain here?

If so, what all can be affected?
The frontal lobes make up large portions of the brain just behind the forehead. The major role of the frontal lobes is the regulation of behavior such as perception, attention, memory, language, motor functions and social behavior.
The frontal lobe is also involved in complex thought, such as issues dealing with ethical behavior and morality, initiative, and motivation. Damage to this area may lead to behaviors that are not consistent with the norms of society.  (+ info)

---

---

• Home
• Our method
• Usage examples
• Index

• Statistics
• Contact

---