All men out there! Are you 20-40yrs old? Then this is especially for you.
This covers testicular cancer, its risk factors, types, and its cure and diagnosis procedures.
Testicular cancer is a disease in which cells become malignant (cancerous) in one or both testicles.
As you know the testicles which are also called testes or gonads are a pair of male sex glands located under the penis in a sac-like pouch called the scrotum.
These testes produce and store sperm, and are also the body’s main source of male hormones. These hormones control the development of the reproductive organs and male characteristics.
Let you know that this type of cancer is broadly classified into two general types: seminoma and nonseminoma. Seminomas make up about 30 percent of all testicular cancers.
Testicular tumors may contain both seminoma and nonseminoma cells.
Nonseminomas are a group of cancers that include choriocarcinoma, embryonal carcinoma, teratoma, and yolk sac tumors.
Now that you have come to know what is testicular cancer and its types let’s look into the other facts of the disease
- Testicular cancer is the most common malignancy in young men between the ages of 20 and 34. There are about 7500 new cases yearly, with approximately 350 deaths per year in the US.
- Although it accounts for only about 1 percent of all cancers in men, it is the number one cancer killer among men in their 20’s and 30’s.
- Most testicular cancers are self-discovered by patients as a painless or uncomfortable lump in the testicle.
- It is more common in white men than black or Asian.
- Pure seminomas constitute roughly 40% of all testicular cancer cases. Forty percent of the testicular cancers have mixture of histology.
- The cancer risk for boys with a history of undescended testicles is about 10-40 times higher than normal individuals.
- The risk remains elevated after surgical correction. Both testes are at higher risk, not just the undescended one.
- The risk of developing the disease was estimated at 1 out of 20 for a testis retained in the abdomen and 1 out of 80 if it was within the inguinal canal.
Good News!! If detected early this testicular cancer is almost always curable. Early stage of the disease can be treated with surgery and radiation therapy. Late stage testicular cancer can be treated with the combination of surgery, radiation therapy and/or chemotherapy.
The prognosis for men with testicular cancer is very good, even with late stage disease.
In short let’s look into the diagnosis of testicular cancer.
Firstly the doctor evaluates a man’s general health to find the cause of the symptoms. Later a physical exam, then a laboratory and diagnostic tests follow.
If a tumor is suspected, the doctor will probably suggest a biopsy, which involves surgery to remove the testicle by orchiectomy so that samples of tissue can be examined under a microscope for further proceedings.
If testicular cancer is found, more tests are needed to find out if the cancer has spread from the testicle to other parts of the body. Determining the stage (extent) of the disease helps the doctor to plan appropriate treatment.
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