Cancer is second only to cardiovascular disease as the leading cause of death in the Western world. Although cancer is primarily a disease of the elderly with more than 60% of cancer deaths occurring in those over 65 years, cancer can strike even the youngest of children.
Cancer appears to occur when the growth of cells in the body is out of control and cells divide too quickly. Cancer can develop in almost any organ or tissue such as lung, colon, breast, skin, bone or nerve tissue.
The most common sites are:
Prostrate 24%
13% breast
Lung 13%
Colorectal 9%
Bladder 3%
Uterus 2.5%
The cause of cancer is believed to be a combination of genetic factors and external carcinogens such as snuff, viruses, infection, asbestos, vinyl chloride, an inadequate diet.
Cancer often has no specific symptoms, so it is important to limit your risk factors and undergo appropriate cancer screening. Signs and symptoms depend on the location of the cancer, cancer size, and to what extent it affects the nearby organs or structures.
If the cancer has spread (metastasized), then symptoms may appear in different parts of the body. As the cancer grows, it begins to push on nearby organs, blood vessels and nerves. If the cancer is in a critical area, such as parts of the brain, even the smallest tumor can cause early symptoms.
But sometimes cancers start in places where it does not cause any symptoms until the cancer has grown quite large. pancreatic cancer, for example, usually do not grow enough to feel from outside the body. By the time a pancreatic cancer causes these signs or symptoms, usually reached an advanced stage.
A cancer may also cause symptoms common to many other problems, such as fatigue, fever and weight loss. This may be because the cancer uses much of the energy of the body or cause the release of substances which affect metabolism.
Some types of lung cancer that hormone-like substances that affect blood calcium levels, affecting nerves and muscles and causing weakness and dizziness.
It is important to know that some of the general (non-specific) signs and symptoms of cancer are, but remember you have any of these does not mean you have cancer.
Most cancers can be treated and some cured, depending on the specific type, location and stage. The earlier cancer is detected, the better the prognosis.
A good example of the importance of early detection of cancer is melanoma skin cancer. Skin cancer can be easy to remove if it has not grown deep into the skin, and the rate of survival at 5 years (percentage of people living at least 5 years after diagnosis) at this stage is nearly 100%.
The breast cancer screening by mammography has been shown to reduce the average stage of diagnosis of breast cancer in a population. Colorectal cancer can be detected by testing for fecal occult blood and colonoscopy, which reduces both colon cancer incidence and mortality, presumably through the detection and removal of premalignant polyps. Similarly, cervical cytology testing (using the Pap smear) leads to the identification and removal of precancerous lesions.
Testicular self-examination is recommended for men from age 15 to detect testicular cancer.
SIGNS AND SYMPTOMS
The pain may be an early symptom with some cancers such as bone cancer or testicular cancer.
long-term constipation, diarrhea, or a change in the size of the stool may be a sign of colon cancer.
Pain when urinating, blood in urine or change in bladder function (eg, more or less frequent urination) could be related to bladder cancer or prostate.
Skin cancer may bleed and resemble sores that do not heal.
A prolonged injury in the mouth could be an oral cancer and should be treated promptly, especially in patients who smoke, chew, snuff or drink alcohol frequently.
Sores on the penis or vagina or may be signs of infection or a cancer early, and should not be overlooked.
Unusual bleeding may occur in either early or advanced cancer.
The blood in the sputum (phlegm) may be a sign of lung cancer.
Blood in the stool (fecal or a dark or black) could be a sign of colon or rectal cancer.
Blood in the urine may be a sign of bladder or kidney cancer.
A bloody discharge from the nipple may be a sign of breast cancer.
Many cancers can be felt through the skin, especially in the breast, testicle, lymph nodes (glands), and soft tissues of the body. A lump or thickening may be an early or late sign of cancer.
While they often have other causes, indigestion or difficulty swallowing may be a sign of cancer of the esophagus, stomach, or pharynx (throat).
A cough that does not go away may be a sign of lung cancer.
A cancer may be suspected of a variety of reasons, but a definitive diagnosis of most malignancies must be confirmed by histological examination of cancer cells by a pathologist.
TREATMENT
Once diagnosed, cancer is usually treated with a combination of surgery, chemotherapy and radiotherapy.
Radiotherapy may be used to treat almost all types of solid tumors, including cancers of the brain, breast, cervix, larynx, lung, pancreas, prostate, skin, stomach, uterus, or soft tissue sarcomas.
Most forms of chemotherapy target all rapidly dividing cells and are not specific to cancer cells, although some degree of specificity may come from the inability of cancer cells to repair DNA damage, while normal cells can usually.
contemporary methods to generate an immune response against tumors include intravesical BCG immunotherapy for superficial bladder cancer and the use of interferons and other cytokines to induce an immune response in renal cell carcinoma and melanoma patients.
pain medications like morphine and oxycodone, and anti-emetic drugs to suppress nausea and vomiting, are widely used in patients with cancer-related symptoms. transmission and disease.
Advances in cancer research have made a vaccine designed to prevent cancer available. The vaccine protects against four types of HPV, which together cause 70% of cervical cancers and 90% of genital warts.
The consensus on diet and cancer is that obesity increases the risk of developing cancer. The components of the anti-cancer foods are also proving to be more numerous and diverse than it is understood, so patients are increasingly being advised to consume fresh fruits and vegetables not for maximum health benefits.
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