Disease Progression And Disease Prevention in Hepatology And Gastroenterology

Advances in cancer genomics are transforming our understanding of cancer, and have profound implications for its prevention, diagnosis, and treatment. Evolutionary dynamics suggests that as few as two mutations can cause transformation of normal cells into cancer stem cells. A process of Darwinian selection, involving a further three or more mutations, taking place over a period of years, can then result in progression to a life-threatening tumour. In many cases the immune response can recognise and eliminate the mutant cells, but most advanced tumours have mutations that activate immune checkpoints and enable the tumour to hide from the immune system. For the most hard-to-treat tumours, future progress will require molecular diagnostics to detect cancer-causing mutations in healthy subjects, and new drugs or vaccines that prevent the progression process.

Editors: Feavers, Ian, Pollard, Andrew J, Sadarangani, Manish (Eds.)
Concise pocketbook designed to support physicians, virologists, and immunologists in their day-to-day practice
Written and edited by key thought leaders and developed using the latest clinical evidence and guidelines
High quality full-color supportive illustrations, tables and graphs enable complicated concepts to be made clear to readers with different levels of background understanding

This book is a collection of excellent reviews and perspectives contributed by experts in the multidisciplinary field of basic science, clinical studies and treatment options for a wide range of acute and chronic inflammatory diseases or cancer. The goal has been to demonstrate that persistent or chronic (unresolved or subclinical) inflammation is a common denominator in the genesis, progression and manifestation of many illnesses and/or cancers, particularly during the aging process.