# heart cancer **URL:** \ **Category:** Cecil's Columns/Staff Reports\ **Created:** [August 2, 2000, 5:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/heart-cancer/27867 "2000-08-02T17:15:00Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 6\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![SY](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/71e660/32.png) [@SY](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SY)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2000, 5:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/heart-cancer/27867/1 "2000-08-02T17:15:00Z")
Cecil mentioned that one “plausible” guess about why muscle cancers in general are rare was the rate of cell replacement. Presumably, he meant that muscle cells are replaced slowly compared to, say, glandular cells. Here’s the problem with that guess: two fairly common cancers are brain and testicular cancer. And both organs(all three, if you want to be pedantic!) have extremely slow cell replacement, much slower than muscles. In the case of the brain, I think it’s zero. But don’t trust me on this; I’m not a doctor, but I did play one on TV. ---
**Author:** ![Arnold\_Winkelried](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Arnold\_Winkelried](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Arnold_Winkelried)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2000, 6:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/heart-cancer/27867/2 "2000-08-02T18:30:12Z")
Welcome to the SDMB, and thank you for posting your comment. Please include a link to Cecil’s column if it’s on the straight dope web site. To include a link, it can be as simple as including the web page location in your post (make sure there is a space before and after the text of the URL). Cecil’s column can be found on-line at this link: [Is there such a thing as cancer of the heart? (25-Nov-1994)](http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a941125.html) ---
**Author:** ![dtilque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d6d6ee/32.png) [@dtilque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dtilque)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2000, 8:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/heart-cancer/27867/3 "2000-08-02T20:34:10Z")
It’s true that neurons seldom reproduce, although recently they’ve found evidence that at least one part of the adult brain does grow new neurons under certain conditions. But in brain cancer, the cells that become cancerous are not neurons, but rather glial cells. There’s about 10 glial cells for each neuron. They perform support functions for the brain. ---
**Author:** ![SY](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/71e660/32.png) [@SY](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SY)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2000, 9:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/heart-cancer/27867/4 "2000-08-02T21:04:03Z")
What’s their relative rate of replacement? And can you shed any light on the burning question of testicles? ---
**Author:** ![Fiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e274bd/32.png) [@Fiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fiver)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2000, 12:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/heart-cancer/27867/5 "2000-08-03T12:55:31Z")
**SY** : > [@](#): > > Here’s the problem with that guess: two fairly common cancers are brain and testicular cancer. And both organs(all three, if you want to be pedantic!) have extremely slow cell replacement, much slower than muscles. In the case of the brain, I think it’s zero. Brain cancer isn’t common. I just did a quick search, and [this list](http://www.healthgoods.com/Education/Health_Information/Cancer_Rates_and_Risks/10_most_common_cancers.htm), as well as others I found, doesn’t even mention brain cancer in a list of ten most common cancers. And just as a seat-of-the-pants observation, it seems to me most brain tumors are metastases. As for the testicles, they produce new cells all the time, perhaps more often than any other part of the body. We call these cells sperm. ---
**Author:** ![Fiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e274bd/32.png) [@Fiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fiver)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2000, 1:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/heart-cancer/27867/6 "2000-08-03T13:05:30Z")
Sorry, let me try that again: [http://www.healthgoods.com/Education/Health\_Information/Cancer\_Rates\_and\_Risks/10\_most\_common\_cancers.htm](http://www.healthgoods.com/Education/Health_Information/Cancer_Rates_and_Risks/10_most_common_cancers.htm)