• Question: We know that cancer is formed by abnormal cells that multiply too much, and don't die, can cancer be given through a tablet? If it is true, is it legal and what would it be given for?

    Asked by mollieandkatey to Mariam, Leo, Jo on 21 Jun 2010 in Categories: .
    • Photo: Mariam Orme

      Mariam Orme answered on 16 Jun 2010:


      No, you can’t get cancer from a tablet. Some chemicals (like cigarette smoke) increase the chances of getting mutations in cells, and therefore increase the risk of getting cancer. So I suppose that if you made tablets containing dangerous chemicals like that, those tablets would increase your risk of getting cancer if you took them. But there would be absolutely no good reason to do that!

    • Photo: Joanna Watson

      Joanna Watson answered on 16 Jun 2010:


      There are some tablets that are used as medicines that can make you more likely to get cancer – like the hormone replacement therapy that some women take when they are going through the menopause. These medicines are only legal because they have benefits for some people that are good enough to outweigh the extra cancer risk.

    • Photo: Leo Garcia

      Leo Garcia answered on 21 Jun 2010:


      If the tablet contained high amounts of radioactivity, then I suppose it would be possible for it to cause cancer. Certainly no such thing exists for anything other than medical treatment purposes.

      Chemotherapy can be given in tablet form:

      http://www.cancerhelp.org.uk/about-cancer/treatment/chemotherapy/having/chemotherapy-tablets-or-capsules

      But this is for treatment, not causing cancer.

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