Cancer can sneak up on you if you are not aware of the early symptoms. Some cancers can be cured without much treatment if they are diagnosed cursorily. This article will focus on cancer symptoms in men specifically and will outline other signs that may point to the illness.
President of Core Cancer Foundation, Dr. Vipul Sud says: “The risk of being struck by cancer increases after the age of 50. Men must go for a routine checkup. In fact, PSA tests must be done to detect cancer in its inception stage”.
A Few Symptoms of Cancer in Men
1. Changed bowel movement is usually a symptom of colon cancer in men. Check if you’re passing blood with your stools or complaining of diarrhea. Constipation is not necessarily one of the symptoms but is still significant enough to see a doctor.
2. A wound taking too long to heal must not be overlooked. The prolonged process of healing may be a symptom of cancer in men.
3. Bleeding of gums is a symptom of gum cancer. It’s a rare kind of cancer but can be cured if detected at an early stage. So any type of lesion in the gums which takes more than two weeks to heal needs to be examined.
4. Unexplained swellings in the groin or pain in pelvic region are symptoms of testicular and prostate cancer. If the pain lasts for a handful of days it is advisable to visit your doctor.
5. Hemoptysis (coughing up blood) is a symptom of lung cancer. Avoid using cough suppressants but do take a note of how much blood you cough up.
6. Constant fatigue is one of the most common cancer symptoms in men. Although it might be recurrent in advanced stages yet it does surface even at an early phase.
7. Lumps on testicles are a symptom of prostate cancer. Just like women keep an eye on their breast to locate symptoms of breast cancer, men must as well examine their testicles and scrotum every month. Boys aged 15 years have complained of lumps on their testicles, so there’s no upper or lower age limit to this. In fact it is essential for young boys to know the importance of what is popularly known as – TSE – testicular self examination.
8. Breast cancer - like Gum cancer - is rare, but exists. Men must look out for symptoms like nipple retraction, swelling in either breast, scaly/red appearances of the nipple and in some cases nipple discharge.
There is a lot to look out for, but don't turn into a hypochondriac. Just look out for these classic cancer symptoms in men and get them checked out by a doctor. They'll probably amount to nothing, but it's best practice to have them looked at anyway.
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