Questões de Inglês

Cancer, a genetic disease, is known to affect more and more individuals as life spans increase. It is estimated that nearly one in three people will have neoplastic disease in his or her lifetime. However, the good news is that two out of three people remain unaffected. Even most heavy smokers, whose lungs are bombarded with carcinogens and tumor promoters over the years, are cancer free.

It has been proven that much of all men age 60 or older have microscopic prostate cancer when examined at autopsy. The majority of these microtumors never develop into cancer, though. Disseminated cancer cells are present throughout the body in most cancer patients, but only a small minority of these cells develop into secondary tumors as the rest is kept under control by the body.

Immune surveillance has played a major role in the defence against virus-associated tumors, where the virally encoded transforming proteins provide readily recognizable foreign targets. But nonviral tumors, composed of aberrant host cells, do not provide such targets, and the immune response is suppressed by defences against autoimmune reactions. Rather, it is now known that the main safeguards against cancer are not immunological at all.

Abnormal cell division is an indication of tumor cells as the mutated genes responsible for this proliferation are called cancer genes or oncogenes. Their normal function is not to cause cancer but to participate in the regulation of normal cell division. Meanwhile, also known as tumor suppressor, genes perceive the illegitimate activation of proliferation-driving genes and slow down.

There seem to be diverse mechanisms which protect against cancer. In addition to driving the proliferation of cancer cells, mutations or epigenetic changes may influence the ability of the cells to invade bordering tissues, giving rise to systemic metastasis, or resisting treatment. Notably, metastasis-favoring mutations may occur at a very early stage of tumor development, long before there are sufficient numbers of tumor cells to allow the manifestation of this property.

In the 1970s, American biologist Beatrice Mintz, discovered a defense against cancer while working with a highly malignant line of teratoma cells. Mintz found that adult mice subcutaneously inoculated with the cells all succumbed to teratomas. When the teratoma cells were introduced into very early embryos, however, no malignancies developed. The introduced cells simply became part of the organism, participating in the normal development of the mouse and contributing to many tissues of the embryo. This normalization of embryonic tumor cells in the early developmental environment is the most extreme example of the differentiation of malignant into normal cells. There are many other less spectacular examples in the later literature.

In sum, evolution has provided us and other animals with multiple mechanisms that stop normal cells from escaping into uncontrolled division. If they nevertheless escape, the cell mobilizes multiple mechanisms to stop the outlaw cell and preserve the normal organization of tissues. These mechanisms can stop life-threatening malignant growths early on. Only after the normal tissue neighborhood has been corrupted by the tumor cells so that it no longer inhibits, but rather stimulates, malignant growth can sail on uninhibited.

Adapted from: .

 

According to the text,

 EBOLA FACTS

 

I - ______________ The news that a Dallas nurse who helped care for Thomas Eric Duncan was infected with the Ebola virus has fed fears of health care workers across the United States. The Dallas nurse was the second person — and second health care worker — to contract Ebola outside of West Africa. A nurse in Spain was infected in September while treating a missionary who had been infected in Sierra Leone and then flown to a hospital in Madrid. More than 400 health care workers in West Africa have been infected with Ebola during the current outbreak, and 233 have died as of Oct. 8. The World Health Organization said that the high rates of infection among medical workers could be attributed to shortages or improper use of protective equipment; not enough medical personnel; and long working hours in isolation wards.

 

II- _______________ At least 16 Ebola cases have been treated outside of West Africa in the current outbreak, including a Dallas hospital worker who tested positive for Ebola on Oct. 11. Most of these involve health and aid workers who contracted Ebola in West Africa and were transported back to their home country for treatment. Three cases were diagnosed outside of West Africa: A Liberian man who began showing symptoms four days after arriving in Dallas, a Spanish nurse who became ill after treating a missionary in a Madrid hospital and the Dallas hospital worker who wasinvolved in the treatment of a Liberian patient infected with Ebola. These cases are compiled from reports by the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the World Health Organization, Doctors Without Borders and other official agencies.

 

III- ______________ Ebola was discovered in 1976, and it was once thought to originate in gorillas, because human outbreaks began after people ate gorilla meat. But scientists have since ruled out that theory, partly because apes that become infected are even more likely to die than humans. Scientists now believe that bats are the natural reservoir for the virus, and that apes and humans catch it from eating food that bats have drooled or defecated on, or by coming in contact with surfaces covered in infected bat dropping and then touching their eyes or mouths.The current outbreak seems to have started in a village near Guéckédou, Guinea, where bat hunting is common, according to Doctors Without Borders.

 

IV- _______________ Officials have emphasized that there is no risk of transmission from people who have been exposed to the virus but are not yet showing symptoms. Dr. Thomas R. Frieden, director of the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said on Oct. 2 that the odds of contracting Ebola in the United States were extremely low. Ebola spreads through direct contact with body fluids. If an infected person’s blood or vomit gets in another person’s eyes, nose or mouth, the virus may be transmitted. Although Ebola does not cause respiratory problems, a cough from a sick person could infect someone who has been sprayed with saliva. Because of that, being within three feet of a patient for a prolonged time without protective clothing is considered to be direct contact. Specialists at Emory University Medical Center in Atlanta have also found that the virus is present on a patient’s skin after symptoms develop, underlining how contagious the disease is once symptoms set in. The virus can survive for several hours on surfaces, so any object contaminated with bodily fluids may spread the disease. According to the C.D.C., the virus can survive for a few hours on dry surfaces like doorknobs and countertops and can survive for several days in puddles or other collections of body fluid. Bleach solutions can kill it. In the current outbreak, most new cases are occurring among people who have been taking care of sick relatives or who have prepared an infected body for burial. Health care workers are at high risk.

 

V- ________________ There are currently no drugs or vaccines approved by the Food and Drug Administration to treat or prevent Ebola, and in past outbreaks the virus has been fatal in 60 percent to 90 percent of cases. An experimental drug called ZMapp might help infected patients, but the drug is unproven and is no longer available. The World Health Organization suggests that blood from Ebola survivors might be used to treat others, but there is no proof that such a treatment alone would work. The United States government plans to fasttrack development of a vaccine shown to protect macaque monkeys, but there is no guarantee it will be effective in humans. Beyond this, all physicians can do is try to nurse people through the illness, using fluids and medicines to maintain blood pressure, and treat other infections that often strike their weakened bodies. A small percentage of people appear to have an immunity to the Ebola virus.

 

Adapted from New York Times OCT. 14, 2014

When the writer states “[…] But scientists have since ruled out that theory, partly because apes that become infected are even more likely to die than humans […]”, he evaluates this situation as

 EBOLA FACTS

 

I - ______________ The news that a Dallas nurse who helped care for Thomas Eric Duncan was infected with the Ebola virus has fed fears of health care workers across the United States. The Dallas nurse was the second person — and second health care worker — to contract Ebola outside of West Africa. A nurse in Spain was infected in September while treating a missionary who had been infected in Sierra Leone and then flown to a hospital in Madrid. More than 400 health care workers in West Africa have been infected with Ebola during the current outbreak, and 233 have died as of Oct. 8. The World Health Organization said that the high rates of infection among medical workers could be attributed to shortages or improper use of protective equipment; not enough medical personnel; and long working hours in isolation wards.

 

II- _______________ At least 16 Ebola cases have been treated outside of West Africa in the current outbreak, including a Dallas hospital worker who tested positive for Ebola on Oct. 11. Most of these involve health and aid workers who contracted Ebola in West Africa and were transported back to their home country for treatment. Three cases were diagnosed outside of West Africa: A Liberian man who began showing symptoms four days after arriving in Dallas, a Spanish nurse who became ill after treating a missionary in a Madrid hospital and the Dallas hospital worker who wasinvolved in the treatment of a Liberian patient infected with Ebola. These cases are compiled from reports by the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the World Health Organization, Doctors Without Borders and other official agencies.

 

III- ______________ Ebola was discovered in 1976, and it was once thought to originate in gorillas, because human outbreaks began after people ate gorilla meat. But scientists have since ruled out that theory, partly because apes that become infected are even more likely to die than humans. Scientists now believe that bats are the natural reservoir for the virus, and that apes and humans catch it from eating food that bats have drooled or defecated on, or by coming in contact with surfaces covered in infected bat dropping and then touching their eyes or mouths.The current outbreak seems to have started in a village near Guéckédou, Guinea, where bat hunting is common, according to Doctors Without Borders.

 

IV- _______________ Officials have emphasized that there is no risk of transmission from people who have been exposed to the virus but are not yet showing symptoms. Dr. Thomas R. Frieden, director of the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said on Oct. 2 that the odds of contracting Ebola in the United States were extremely low. Ebola spreads through direct contact with body fluids. If an infected person’s blood or vomit gets in another person’s eyes, nose or mouth, the virus may be transmitted. Although Ebola does not cause respiratory problems, a cough from a sick person could infect someone who has been sprayed with saliva. Because of that, being within three feet of a patient for a prolonged time without protective clothing is considered to be direct contact. Specialists at Emory University Medical Center in Atlanta have also found that the virus is present on a patient’s skin after symptoms develop, underlining how contagious the disease is once symptoms set in. The virus can survive for several hours on surfaces, so any object contaminated with bodily fluids may spread the disease. According to the C.D.C., the virus can survive for a few hours on dry surfaces like doorknobs and countertops and can survive for several days in puddles or other collections of body fluid. Bleach solutions can kill it. In the current outbreak, most new cases are occurring among people who have been taking care of sick relatives or who have prepared an infected body for burial. Health care workers are at high risk.

 

V- ________________ There are currently no drugs or vaccines approved by the Food and Drug Administration to treat or prevent Ebola, and in past outbreaks the virus has been fatal in 60 percent to 90 percent of cases. An experimental drug called ZMapp might help infected patients, but the drug is unproven and is no longer available. The World Health Organization suggests that blood from Ebola survivors might be used to treat others, but there is no proof that such a treatment alone would work. The United States government plans to fasttrack development of a vaccine shown to protect macaque monkeys, but there is no guarantee it will be effective in humans. Beyond this, all physicians can do is try to nurse people through the illness, using fluids and medicines to maintain blood pressure, and treat other infections that often strike their weakened bodies. A small percentage of people appear to have an immunity to the Ebola virus.

Adapted from New York Times OCT. 14, 2014

 

Concerning its source and genre, the main objective of this text is to present

 EBOLA FACTS

 

I - ______________ The news that a Dallas nurse who helped care for Thomas Eric Duncan was infected with the Ebola virus has fed fears of health care workers across the United States. The Dallas nurse was the second person — and second health care worker — to contract Ebola outside of West Africa. A nurse in Spain was infected in September while treating a missionary who had been infected in Sierra Leone and then flown to a hospital in Madrid. More than 400 health care workers in West Africa have been infected with Ebola during the current outbreak, and 233 have died as of Oct. 8. The World Health Organization said that the high rates of infection among medical workers could be attributed to shortages or improper use of protective equipment; not enough medical personnel; and long working hours in isolation wards.

 

II- _______________ At least 16 Ebola cases have been treated outside of West Africa in the current outbreak, including a Dallas hospital worker who tested positive for Ebola on Oct. 11. Most of these involve health and aid workers who contracted Ebola in West Africa and were transported back to their home country for treatment. Three cases were diagnosed outside of West Africa: A Liberian man who began showing symptoms four days after arriving in Dallas, a Spanish nurse who became ill after treating a missionary in a Madrid hospital and the Dallas hospital worker who wasinvolved in the treatment of a Liberian patient infected with Ebola. These cases are compiled from reports by the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the World Health Organization, Doctors Without Borders and other official agencies.

 

III- ______________ Ebola was discovered in 1976, and it was once thought to originate in gorillas, because human outbreaks began after people ate gorilla meat. But scientists have since ruled out that theory, partly because apes that become infected are even more likely to die than humans. Scientists now believe that bats are the natural reservoir for the virus, and that apes and humans catch it from eating food that bats have drooled or defecated on, or by coming in contact with surfaces covered in infected bat dropping and then touching their eyes or mouths.The current outbreak seems to have started in a village near Guéckédou, Guinea, where bat hunting is common, according to Doctors Without Borders.

 

IV- _______________ Officials have emphasized that there is no risk of transmission from people who have been exposed to the virus but are not yet showing symptoms. Dr. Thomas R. Frieden, director of the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said on Oct. 2 that the odds of contracting Ebola in the United States were extremely low. Ebola spreads through direct contact with body fluids. If an infected person’s blood or vomit gets in another person’s eyes, nose or mouth, the virus may be transmitted. Although Ebola does not cause respiratory problems, a cough from a sick person could infect someone who has been sprayed with saliva. Because of that, being within three feet of a patient for a prolonged time without protective clothing is considered to be direct contact. Specialists at Emory University Medical Center in Atlanta have also found that the virus is present on a patient’s skin after symptoms develop, underlining how contagious the disease is once symptoms set in. The virus can survive for several hours on surfaces, so any object contaminated with bodily fluids may spread the disease. According to the C.D.C., the virus can survive for a few hours on dry surfaces like doorknobs and countertops and can survive for several days in puddles or other collections of body fluid. Bleach solutions can kill it. In the current outbreak, most new cases are occurring among people who have been taking care of sick relatives or who have prepared an infected body for burial. Health care workers are at high risk.

 

V- ________________ There are currently no drugs or vaccines approved by the Food and Drug Administration to treat or prevent Ebola, and in past outbreaks the virus has been fatal in 60 percent to 90 percent of cases. An experimental drug called ZMapp might help infected patients, but the drug is unproven and is no longer available. The World Health Organization suggests that blood from Ebola survivors might be used to treat others, but there is no proof that such a treatment alone would work. The United States government plans to fasttrack development of a vaccine shown to protect macaque monkeys, but there is no guarantee it will be effective in humans. Beyond this, all physicians can do is try to nurse people through the illness, using fluids and medicines to maintain blood pressure, and treat other infections that often strike their weakened bodies. A small percentage of people appear to have an immunity to the Ebola virus.

 

Adapted from New York Times OCT. 14, 2014

Tick the alternative which contains the CORRECT set of statements in relation to the text above.

 

I. Until October 8th, more than 200 health care workers have died by contracting Ebola.

 

II. Most new cases of infection occurred due to people who cared of infected relatives or prepared infected bodies for burial.

 

III. Specialists found that it is almost possible the virus is present on a patient’s skin after symptoms develop.

 

Choose the CORRECT answer.

 EBOLA FACTS

 

I - ______________ The news that a Dallas nurse who helped care for Thomas Eric Duncan was infected with the Ebola virus has fed fears of health care workers across the United States. The Dallas nurse was the second person — and second health care worker — to contract Ebola outside of West Africa. A nurse in Spain was infected in September while treating a missionary who had been infected in Sierra Leone and then flown to a hospital in Madrid. More than 400 health care workers in West Africa have been infected with Ebola during the current outbreak, and 233 have died as of Oct. 8. The World Health Organization said that the high rates of infection among medical workers could be attributed to shortages or improper use of protective equipment; not enough medical personnel; and long working hours in isolation wards.

 

II- _______________ At least 16 Ebola cases have been treated outside of West Africa in the current outbreak, including a Dallas hospital worker who tested positive for Ebola on Oct. 11. Most of these involve health and aid workers who contracted Ebola in West Africa and were transported back to their home country for treatment. Three cases were diagnosed outside of West Africa: A Liberian man who began showing symptoms four days after arriving in Dallas, a Spanish nurse who became ill after treating a missionary in a Madrid hospital and the Dallas hospital worker who wasinvolved in the treatment of a Liberian patient infected with Ebola. These cases are compiled from reports by the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the World Health Organization, Doctors Without Borders and other official agencies.

 

III- ______________ Ebola was discovered in 1976, and it was once thought to originate in gorillas, because human outbreaks began after people ate gorilla meat. But scientists have since ruled out that theory, partly because apes that become infected are even more likely to die than humans. Scientists now believe that bats are the natural reservoir for the virus, and that apes and humans catch it from eating food that bats have drooled or defecated on, or by coming in contact with surfaces covered in infected bat dropping and then touching their eyes or mouths.The current outbreak seems to have started in a village near Guéckédou, Guinea, where bat hunting is common, according to Doctors Without Borders.

 

IV- _______________ Officials have emphasized that there is no risk of transmission from people who have been exposed to the virus but are not yet showing symptoms. Dr. Thomas R. Frieden, director of the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said on Oct. 2 that the odds of contracting Ebola in the United States were extremely low. Ebola spreads through direct contact with body fluids. If an infected person’s blood or vomit gets in another person’s eyes, nose or mouth, the virus may be transmitted. Although Ebola does not cause respiratory problems, a cough from a sick person could infect someone who has been sprayed with saliva. Because of that, being within three feet of a patient for a prolonged time without protective clothing is considered to be direct contact. Specialists at Emory University Medical Center in Atlanta have also found that the virus is present on a patient’s skin after symptoms develop, underlining how contagious the disease is once symptoms set in. The virus can survive for several hours on surfaces, so any object contaminated with bodily fluids may spread the disease. According to the C.D.C., the virus can survive for a few hours on dry surfaces like doorknobs and countertops and can survive for several days in puddles or other collections of body fluid. Bleach solutions can kill it. In the current outbreak, most new cases are occurring among people who have been taking care of sick relatives or who have prepared an infected body for burial. Health care workers are at high risk.

 

V- ________________ There are currently no drugs or vaccines approved by the Food and Drug Administration to treat or prevent Ebola, and in past outbreaks the virus has been fatal in 60 percent to 90 percent of cases. An experimental drug called ZMapp might help infected patients, but the drug is unproven and is no longer available. The World Health Organization suggests that blood from Ebola survivors might be used to treat others, but there is no proof that such a treatment alone would work. The United States government plans to fasttrack development of a vaccine shown to protect macaque monkeys, but there is no guarantee it will be effective in humans. Beyond this, all physicians can do is try to nurse people through the illness, using fluids and medicines to maintain blood pressure, and treat other infections that often strike their weakened bodies. A small percentage of people appear to have an immunity to the Ebola virus.

 

Adapted from New York Times OCT. 14, 2014

In relation to Ebola facts as the text presents them, mark the statements below as true (T) or false (F).

 

( ) According to scientists there is no risk of transmission from apes, because they have been also infected and died, more than humans.

 

( ) Doctors Without Borders believe the current outbreak has started in Guinea.

 

( ) The World Health Organization indicates blood from Ebola survivors as a useful treatment.

 

The statements are, respectively,

THERE IS ONE mirror in my house. It is behind a sliding panel in the hallway upstairs. Our faction allows me to stand in front of it on the second day of every third month, the day my mother cuts my hair. I sit ____ the stool and my mother stands ____ me ____ the scissors, trimmimg. The strands fall ____ floor ____ a dull, blond ring. When she finishes, she pulls my hair away from my face and twists it into a knot. I note how calm she looks and how focused she is. She is well-practiced in the art of losing herself. I can’t say the same of myself. I sneak a look at my reflection when she isn’t paying attention – not for the sake of vanity, but out of curiosity. A lot can happen to a person’s appearance in three months.

 

Tick the alternative which contains the equivalent to the expression in bold typeface found in the text above (lines 3- 4).

 

“[…] on the second day of every third month”