Need info on cancer - Cancer Message Board

wannabehotguy · 07-20-2003, 07:55 PM

To anybody who has cancer,

I am wondering what are the warning signs of cancer. I know I've read the symptoms but those also seem to be the symptoms of other diseases. When the DOCTOR does blood work do they test for cancer?

Just asking because I was in the hospital a couple weeks ago for several hours because of my stomach problem and I still don't feel recovered.

Kalie · 07-22-2003, 07:26 AM

There can be certain indications of cancer in blood work, like an elevated white blood cell count, among others However, Drs usually don't screen for all the markers unless they have reason to, meaning, if you are just getting a check-up and are in otherwise good health, it is unlikely they ran all the screens for cancer. I was diagnosed with stage II breast cancer last year, and even after my diagnosis I had no markers in my blood work.

projapoti · 07-25-2003, 11:17 AM

The main warning signs of cancer are the following (obviously, you don't have to have all or even any of the symptoms to have cancer...but the following are common)

fever/chills/sweats
night sweats
bone pain at nighttime
unexplained weight loss
unexplained bony fractures
malaise
endocrine abnormalities (cushing's syndrome, SIADH)

Usually what happens is that the doctor will note these symptoms, and it will go along with a specific complaint related to where the cancer may be. For example, a person may be having any of the symptoms above and also be experiencing chest pain, hemoptysis or coughing. This raises questions of lung cancer...at this point the doctor will do imaging and biochemical investigations to see if (s)he can find evidence of a tumour. After this, a biopsy of the tumour must be taken and evaluated by a pathologist to see if it is malignant or not. If it is malignant, depending on the tissue type, the doctor will refer the patient on to oncology and they will decide if they need surgery and/or radiation and/or chemotherapy.

jaydees · 07-30-2003, 04:42 PM

Different cancers mean different symptoms as well.

Colon cancer for instance syptoms include

blood in stool
flattened stool
bouts of constipation followed by bouts of diaharea

but those would not be symptoms of say lung cancer

You say you are having stomach problems. What exactly? Stomach to some people is simply anything below the rib cage while the actual stomach is partially behind the rib cage.

sharp andominal pains could be
hernia
ulcer
gall bladder stones
acid reflux
irritable bowel
appendicitis
infection in the GI tract
a blockage in the GI tract
liver cirroshis(sp?)

so you can see that there has to be a little more info.

beanies31 · 07-31-2003, 08:46 AM

What are the signs/symptoms for bladder cancer? I am having alot of pain and the Dr says it is just a precaution to test for it.