by sillydog

Signs and Symptoms of Cancer

A symptom is an indication of disease, illness, injury, or that something is not right in the body. Symptoms are felt or noticed by a person, but may not easily be noticed by anyone else. For example, chills, weakness, achiness, shortness of breath, and a cough may be symptoms of pneumonia. A sign is also an indication that something is not right in the body. But signs are defined as things that can be seen by a doctor, nurse, or other health care professional. Fever, rapid breathing rate, and abnormal breathing sounds heard through a stethoscope may be signs of pneumonia.

Having one symptom or sign may not give enough information to suggest a cause. For example, a rash in a child could be a symptom of a number of things including poison ivy, an infectious disease like measles, an infection limited to the skin, or a food allergy. But if the rash is seen along with other signs and symptoms like a high fever, chills, achiness, and a sore throat, then a doctor can get a better picture of the illness. In many cases, a patient’s signs and symptoms do not give enough clues by themselves for the doctor to figure out the cause of an illness. Then medical tests, such as x-rays, blood tests, or a biopsy may be needed.

Cancer is a group of diseases that may cause almost any sign or symptom. The signs and symptoms will depend on where the cancer is, the size of the cancer, and how much it affects the nearby organs or structures. If a cancer spreads (metastasizes), then symptoms may appear in different parts of the body. As a cancer grows, it begins to push on nearby organs, blood vessels, and nerves. This pressure creates some of the signs and symptoms of cancer. If the cancer is in a critical area, such as certain 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. Pancreas cancers, for example, do not usually grow large enough to be felt from the outside of the body. Some pancreatic cancers do not cause symptoms until they begin to grow around nearby nerves (this causes a backache). Others grow around the bile duct, which blocks the flow of bile and leads to a yellowing of the skin known as jaundice. By the time a pancreatic cancer causes these signs or symptoms, it has usually reached an advanced stage.

A cancer may also cause symptoms such as fever, fatigue, or weight loss. This may be because cancer cells use up much of the body’s energy supply or release substances that change the body’s metabolism. Or the cancer may cause the immune system to react in ways that produce these symptoms. Sometimes, cancer cells release substances into the bloodstream that cause symptoms not usually thought to result from cancers. For example, some cancers of the pancreas can release substances which cause blood clots to develop in veins of the legs. Some lung cancers make hormone-like substances that affect blood calcium levels, affecting nerves and muscles and causing weakness and dizziness.

Treatment is most successful when cancer is found as early as possible. Finding cancer early usually means it can be treated while it is still small and is less likely to have spread to other parts of the body. This often means a better chance for a cure, especially if initial treatment is to be surgery. A good example of the importance of finding cancer early is melanoma skin cancer. Skin cancer can be easy to remove if it has not grown deep into the skin, and the 5-year survival rate (percentage of people living at least 5 years after diagnosis) at this stage is nearly 100%. But once melanoma has spread to other parts of the body the survival rate drops dramatically.

Sometimes people ignore symptoms either because they do not know that the symptoms could mean something is wrong or because they are frightened by what they might mean and don’t want to seek medical help. General symptoms, such as fatigue, are more likely to have a cause other than cancer and can seem unimportant, especially if they have an obvious cause or only last a short time. In a similar way, a person may reason that a more specific symptom like a breast mass is probably a cyst that will go away by itself. But neither of these symptoms should be discounted or overlooked, especially if they have been present for a long time or are getting worse.

Most likely, any symptoms you may have will not be caused by cancer, but it’s important to have them checked out by your doctor, just in case. If cancer is not the cause, your doctor can help figure out what is and treat it, if needed. In some cases it is possible to detect some cancers before symptoms occur. The American Cancer Society and other health groups encourage the early detection of certain cancers before symptoms occur by recommending a cancer-related check-up and specific tests for people who do not have any symptoms. Keep in mind, however, that these recommended tests do not decrease the importance of reporting any symptoms to your doctor.

It is important to know what some of the general (non-specific) signs and symptoms of cancer are, but remember that having any of these does not mean that you have cancer. There are many other conditions that can cause these signs and symptoms, too. Most people with cancer will lose weight at some time with their disease. An unexplained (unintentional) weight loss of 10 pounds or more may be the first sign of cancer, particularly cancers of the pancreas, stomach, esophagus, or lung.

Fever is very common with cancer, but is more often seen in advanced disease. Almost all patients with cancer will have fever at some time, especially if the cancer or its treatment affects the immune system and makes it harder for the body to fight infection. Less often, fever may be an early sign of cancer, such as with leukemia or lymphoma. Fatigue may be an important symptom as cancer progresses. It may happen early, though, in cancers such as with leukemia, or if the cancer is causing an ongoing loss of blood, as in some colon or stomach cancers. Pain may be an early symptom with some cancers such as bone cancers or testicular cancer. But most often pain is a symptom of advanced disease. Along with cancers of the skin, some internal cancers can cause skin signs that can be seen. These changes include the skin looking darker (hyper pigmentation), yellow (jaundice), or red (erythema); itching; or excessive hair growth.Along with the above general symptoms, you should watch for the following common symptoms, which could be an indication of cancer. Again, there may be other causes for each of these, but it is important to bring them to your doctor’s attention as soon as possible so that they can be investigated.

Long-term constipation, diarrhea, or a change in the size of the stool may be a sign of colon cancer. Pain with urination, blood in the urine, or a change in bladder function (such as more frequent or less frequent urination) could be related to bladder or prostate cancer. Any changes in bladder or bowel function should be reported to your doctor. Skin cancers may bleed and look like sores that do not heal. A long-lasting sore in the mouth could be an oral cancer and should be dealt with right away, especially in patients who smoke, chew tobacco, or frequently drink alcohol. Sores on the penis or vagina may either be signs of infection or an early cancer, and should not be overlooked.

Unusual bleeding can happen in either early or advanced cancer. Blood in the sputum (phlegm) may be a sign of lung cancer. Blood in the stool (or a dark or black stool) could be a sign of colon or rectal cancer. Cancer of the cervix or the endometrium (lining of the uterus) can cause vaginal bleeding. 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, mostly in the breast, testicle, lymph nodes (glands), and the soft tissues of the body. A lump or thickening may be an early or late sign of cancer. Any lump or thickening should be reported to your doctor, especially if you’ve just discovered it or noticed it has grown in size.

While they commonly have other causes, indigestion or swallowing problems may be a sign of cancer of the esophagus, stomach, or pharynx (throat). Any wart, mole, or freckle that changes in color, size, or shape, or loses its definite borders should be reported to your doctor without delay. The skin lesion may be a melanoma which, if diagnosed early, can be treated successfully. A cough that does not go away may be a sign of lung cancer. Hoarseness can be a sign of cancer of the larynx (voice box) or thyroid. While the signs and symptoms listed above are the more common ones seen with cancer, there are many others that are less common and are not listed here. If you notice any major changes in the way your body functions or the way you feel, especially if it lasts for a long time or gets worse, let your doctor know. If it has nothing to do with cancer, your doctor can investigate it and treat it, if needed. If it is cancer, you’ll give yourself the best chance to have it treated early, when treatment is most likely to be effective.

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by Metrix X

Breast Cancer in Men: The Warning Signs

Breast cancer is traditionally thought of as an exclusively female-related disease. But like breast cancer in women, breast cancer in men is the uncontrolled growth of the cells of the breast tissue.

Breast cancer in men can be just as dangerous as breast cancer in women. More than 1,700 men are diagnosed with male breast cancer each year. But because men often wait to report the symptoms of male breast cancer, the disease is more likely to have spread, leaving many men with less hope that treatment will lead to recovery.

Breast cancer in men accounts for approximately one percent of cases of breast cancer and about 0.2 percent of all malignancies in men, according to The National Cancer Institute. In women, breast cancer represents 26 percent of all cancers. However, all of the types of breast cancer seen in women can also occur in men, although some are quite rare.

The National Cancer Institute estimates that breast cancer in men results in approximately 480 deaths in men compared to more than 40,000 women who die of breast cancer each year.

The survival rate for men is lower than for women. Men have very little breast tissue and do not typically receive mammograms.

Also, men are not taught to do regular breast self-examination. No one knows the exact cause of breast cancer, but risk factors include age, family history of breast cancer, changes in the appearance of the breast and race. Breast cancer is diagnosed more often in White women than Latina, Asian and African American women.

Since breast cancer is 100 times more common among women, the general public does not hear much about breast cancer in men. Many people are unaware that men can develop breast cancer, and neither individual men themselves nor their physicians regularly examine men’s breasts.

Furthermore, when men discover signs of breast cancer, they tend to delay before seeing a physician. This is the main reason why medical researchers have a hard time studying breast cancer in men and the effect it has on the male population. Men do not believe they are susceptible to the disease.

For instance, actor Richard Roundtree, the man who personified masculinity in the iconoclastic blaxploitaion film Shaft, discovered a lump in his right breast in the 1970s. It was cancer.

“When I got the news, I was shocked,” said Roundtree, who has worked with the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation which raises breast cancer awareness among women and men, as well as funds for research. “I thought I couldn’t possibly have breast cancer. Men dont get this, Roundtree once said in a USA Today interview. The actor was fortunate to catch his cancer early and received chemotherapy, radiation treatments, and a mastectomy.

Another celebrity to have had male breast cancer is Peter Criss, a founding member of the rock band KISS, who calls himself the luckiest man in the planet. Criss said getting medical treatment early at the first sign of trouble saved his life.

While some men feel embarrassed because of this macho crap, Criss said surviving breast cancer was actually a blessing. He was treated before the tumor could spread and said he speaks out about breast cancer in men during National Breast Cancer Awareness month every October to raise the profile of this rare disease.

Criss, who played drums for KISS and was known as “Catman,” offered this advice to men who spot lumps in their breast: Don’t sit around playing Mr. Tough Guy. Don’t say ‘It’s going to go away.’ It might not and you might not see life anymore and how beautiful that is.”

Most cases of breast cancer in men are detected in men between the ages of 60 and 70, although the condition can develop in men of any age. A man’s lifetime risk of developing breast cancer is about one-tenth of one percent, or one in 1,000.

However, men with breast cancer show the same racial disparities in survival as do women with the disease, according to a study conducted at Columbia University. Medicare-age African American men with breast cancer were three times more likely to die from the disease than White men. These findings parallel those of previous studies among women, which have shown higher breast cancer mortality rates for African American women at all ages, according to a 2009 study published in the Journal of Clinical Oncology.

Racial disparities in breast cancer outcomes between African American and White women have been reduced to access to health care, and other socioeconomic factors. Similar factors may contribute to the poor outcomes observed among African American men with breast cancer.

Among the findings related to African American men, the researchers reported that they were more likely to have later-stage disease and larger tumors than White men; African American men were 48 percent less likely to be referred to a medical oncologist and 56 percent less likely to receive chemotherapy than White men, though neither difference was significant. Five-year survival was about 90 percent among White patients but 66 percent among African American patients.

On the basis of the findings, the researchers concluded that part of the racial disparity in survival may be due to differences in treatment. Under treatment may account for the racial disparity in breast cancer survival among men.

Medical researchers have said further studies will be needed to explain clinical and biological factors contributing to racial disparities in male breast cancer. Because breast cancer in men is rare at less than one percent of cancers in men, obtaining large sample sizes has been a challenge. Most previous studies have been small, single center, retrospective series.

Early signs, however, indicate that the disease is more manageable and has higher successful treatable rates than when found in women. In many ways, the disease appears similarly in both sexes.

Symptoms of breast cancer

A painless lump, usually discovered by the patient himself, is by far the most common first symptom of breast cancer in men. Typically, the lump appears right beneath the breast, where breast tissue is concentrated.

A lump, however, is seldom the only symptom. Men are more likely than women to have nipple discharge (sometimes bloody) and signs of local spreading, including nipple retraction, fixation to the skin or the underlying tissues, and skin ulceration.

To improve the prognosis of breast cancer in men, broader efforts are needed to let men know that the disease exists and that, like other cancers, it can be cured or controlled if it is diagnosed and treated promptly.

Risk factors attributed to breast cancer.

- Age

The incidence of breast cancer in men, like in women, increases with age. The average age of men at diagnosis is close to 65, about five years older than the average age for women.

- Ethnicity

Breast cancer affects 14 African American men and eight White men in every million. Some studies also suggest that the prevalence is higher among Jewish males.

- Geography

In Egypt, breast cancer in men represents six percent of all breast cancers, and in Zambia, it accounts for 15 percent. It has been suggested that one contributing factor might be an excess of estrogen produced by parasites. Others have proposed a link with liver disease caused by malnutrition.

- Socioeconomic Status

A recent study comparing male breast cancer patients from five metropolitan areas with men of comparable backgrounds who did not have breast cancer, found that the breast cancer patients were more likely to be college graduates and employed as professionals or managers.

- Heredity

Several researchers have reported two or more cases of breast cancer in men within a single family. Several of these reports have involved two brothers; one involved three brothers; and another described breast cancer in a man, his father and his uncle.

- Hormones

Abnormal hormonal activity, a factor that has been linked to the development of female breast cancer, could play a role in the development of male breast cancer as well. Several disorders with a hormonal component have been associated with an increased risk of male breast cancer, and numerous studies suggest that men with breast cancer display abnormal patterns of hormone metabolism and excretion.

- Treatment

The treatment for male breast cancer is generally similar to the treatment of female breast cancer. The basic therapy for cancer that shows no signs of distant spreading is surgery. In advanced stages, it is hormonal and chemotherapy. The small number of men who develop breast cancer makes it unlikely that large prospective trials can ever be undertaken to compare various therapies. It is possible, nonetheless, that institutions that see more than the usual number of cases could collaborate in developing a fund of reliable information. In the meantime, it is important that individual physicians and surgeons keep careful records to document the cases of the several hundred men who develop breast cancer each year in the U.S.

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by Hippy Jon

Question by aag630: How can Taurus and Cancer start a relationship if neither sign with initiate anything?
I’m a Cancer woman and have strong compatibility and attraction with a Taurus acquaintance, but both of our signs our notorious for waiting around for the other person to make the first move. What should I do?

Best answer:

Answer by Leah
start by with friendship. Taurus’s love security! this will ease both of you into a relationship. if you’re already past this stage, suggest a low-key lunch. the way to a Taurus’s heart is through indulgence, especially food. lunch is always more casual than a dinner date, so there won’t be as much pressure.

Add your own answer in the comments!

Question by Jamie: How would an Aquarius and a Cancer do in a relationship?
I don’t believe in horoscopes and signs and all but they do. I’d like to know what they thought when I said I was a cancer and they were aquarius.

Btw, I’m not as introverted and sensitive as my sign suggests. I’m cancer.

Best answer:

Answer by Gem
Aquarius is unemotional and have a stomach of excitement, while Cancers are emotional and can get home sick easy. So maybe opposites attract?

Add your own answer in the comments!

Question by Claire: What are the signs that cancer is terminal?
I know close to nothing about cancer. My mum has been recently diagnosed with breast cancer, and from the state she is in, my view is that it is too late for any treatment. (Sorry for being vague here, I find it too difficult to describe her body. She is physically extremely weak already).
All sorts of tests are being done currently to assess the situation. Before the doctors give us some feed back, I am just wondering if anybody has experiences to relate. Also, do you know of people who have been saved with chemio “at the last minute”? (In her case, it is too late for all other treatments, as doctors told her). Thank you.

Best answer:

Answer by navysarguy
generally the dying part will tip you off

Give your answer to this question below!

Question by Claire: What are the signs that cancer is terminal?
I know close to nothing about cancer. My mum has been recently diagnosed with breast cancer, and from the state she is in, my view is that it is too late for any treatment. (Sorry for being vague here, I find it too difficult to describe her body. She is physically extremely weak already).
All sorts of tests are being done currently to assess the situation. Before the doctors give us some feed back, I am just wondering if anybody has experiences to relate. Also, do you know of people who have been saved with chemio “at the last minute”? (In her case, it is too late for all other treatments, as doctors told her). Thank you.

Best answer:

Answer by navysarguy
generally the dying part will tip you off

Add your own answer in the comments!