We certainly ever or even heard about cancer. It's nothing new to our ears, that cancer is one type of disease with a high mortality rate in the world. As the second most common cause of death after heart disease, cancer is a type of disease where abnormal cell growth occurs uncontrolled so as to destroy the cell or healthy / normal tissue in a person's body.
With a high mortality rate, it is important for us to get to know and know the symptoms of cancer early. The earlier cancer can be known, treatment can we do as early as possible and as effective as possible because we can prevent abnormal growth in the cell cancer, the spread of cancer cells to other organs can be avoided, normal cell damage can be overcome as much as possible, thus the cure rate of the cancer Better / high.
Precautions or early introduction began with themselves. To better recognize and be aware of cancer, then we must know the symptoms or signs of cancer. Unfortunately cancer in most people does not cause a typical symptom or sign. Cancer symptoms actually mostly arise and are realized at the advanced stage.
Although it doesn't always appear, but there are some common symptoms that often arise or felt patients.
The symptoms felt depend on the type and location of the cancer. Cancer symptoms, including:
1. Lumps or swollen glands that are settled, lumps in the breast, lumps on testicles or other body parts
2. Old / persistent cough, can be accompanied by phlegm mixed with blood
3. Changes in the habit of defecating (old diarrhea, repetitive, chapter forms such as goat droppings, etc.), blood on feces
4. Anemia, pale skin, emerging bruises of clear causes
5. Extraordinary tired feeling
6. Change of urination
7. Very noise
8. Clear changes to warts or moles
9. digestive disorders or difficulty swallowing
10. Bleeding or vague vagina is unusual
11. Sudden weight loss
12. Wounds / canken who are not healed
13. Headache who settled
14. Back pain, pelvic pain, bloating, or digestive disorders
15. Decreased appetite
16. Fever settled
Because some types of cancer develop without distinctive symptoms and often new symptoms appear at an advanced stage, cancer diagnosis and therapy is often done late. Apart from knowing cancer symptoms, there are several ways we can do to know more early cancer including:
• Know the family history.
If there is one of the family members who suffer from cancer, a person's level of risk for cancer will increase. It is recommended that family members with cancer do cancer screening is done earlier.
1. Control risk factors, for example:
▪ Don't smoke for them with breast cancer risk
▪︎ Vaccination of HPV for them with the risk of Cervix Cancer
▪︎ Healthy diet and provide exclusive breastfeeding for them with the risk of breast cancer
▪︎ high fiber diet for them with the risk of colon cancer
▪︎ Avoid excessive contact with UV b rays for them with the risk of skin cancer
▪︎ and others.
2. Undergo a physical examination (by a doctor with or without assisted by supporting checks). At present with a high level of knowledge accompanied by progress of the times and technology, cancer can be detected in a faster way.
Some examinations to support the diagnosis of more early cancer, for example:
▪︎ ultrasonography (USG) for breast cancer lumps, abdominal and others
▪ Mammography for breast cancer
▪︎ papsmear for cervix / uterine mouth cancer
▪ Colonoscopy for colon cancer
▪ Blood examination to check the marker of the tumor / cancer (certain types of cancer differently tumor markers)
▪︎ X-ray or radiological examination to determine lung cancer or bone cancer
▪︎dan other
Increasingly recognizing the cancer further, the level of person's alertness to cancer will increase and quickly diagnosed so that it is quickly handled / treated and the level of life expectancy / healing someone will increase.
Author: Dr. Odilia Lustriana (Doctor of Medical Consulent Lab Klinik Pramita Branch Jl. M. Toha No. 163 Bandung)