Early Signs And Prevention Of Urogenital Cancer In Men
Malignant neoplasms developing in general urinary tract are commonly referred to as urogenital system cancers. This grouping includes kidney cancers, prostate cancers, bladder cancers and testicular
Early Signs And Prevention Of Urogenital Cancer In Men
Malignant neoplasms developing in general urinary tract are commonly referred to as urogenital system cancers. This grouping includes kidney cancers, prostate cancers, bladder cancers and testicular cancers. Although all of these diseases demonstrate certain similarities they are in fact different in terms of their behavior and respond to different treatment, so genital organs cancer as well as urinary tract cancer are just convenient generalizations which include a variety of actual diseases. Therefore, in order to detect and prevent them, every type should be approached separately.
The lining of a bladder consists of transitional epithelium so almost any kind of a neoplasm developing in urinary bladder essentially takes its beginning in the cells of that tissue. Hence the other name – transitional cell carcinoma, although it might refer to a more general case of urinary tract cancer. It is currently estimated to be 5th of the most widespread types of cancers in the US and the most common urinary tract cancer with a preponderance of men over women. Over 68,000 people are affected by the disease which is also associated with more than 14,000 deaths. Men above 50 years are especially susceptible. – the age/occurrence correlation can be explained by continuous exposure to the risk factors (namely, carcinogens). So if you smoke for over 50 years your body will accumulate the damage after fifty years of cigarette smoke.
Most common risk factors for bladder cancer include:
- Tobacco (3-5x risk compared to non-smokers). – Although it is notorious that smoking is a primary cause of lung cancer but very few know that it’s the same case for bladder cancer (and the correlation coefficient is almost equally significant as for a lung cancer).
- Certain chemicals such as aromatic amines (dyes, rubber, aluminum) – industrial workers working with these substances are more likely to discover a tumor early on.
- Any prior undergoing chemotherapy and/or radiotherapy might lead to an increased risk of cancer development (e.g. damaged internal tissues as a result of those exposures may lead to tumor formation).
- It is also worth mentioning that there is a particular type of water-dwelling parasite which is linked to a particular type of bladder cancer. Fortunately, these parasites are mostly found in the Middle East and very rarely – in the US.
- Finally, there is a positive correlation between recurrent urinary tract infections and cancer.
Interpreting correctly early signs of disease or urogenital cancer symptoms is crucial for your possible recovery. According to WHO data over 60% of urinary system cancer cases are curable so spreading awareness about the disease progression to make people realize the seriousness of such concerns (esp. if not unfounded). Moreover, some symptoms are extremely rare if not unique because of some pre-existing conditions which, combined with tumor development, resulted in some symptoms generally unassociated with cancer at all. Nonetheless, early detection of such anomalies proved beneficial for a patient as medics managed to localize and to contain a would-be lump.
Bladder tumors do not seem to reveal itself during the early stages – at the time the only hint about cancer might be obtained by a direct examination of a bladder from the inside. However, even this doesn’t guarantee the absence of cancer