Your doctor would send you to an oncologist when your doctor suspects that you may have cancer.
An oncologist looks for signs of possible cancer in your blood tests.
When the samples of your blood are looked at under a microscope the blood samples can show the actual cancer cells.
Other kinds of blood tests can find proteins or other substances which are made by cancer and the blood tests can also tell your doctor or oncologist how well your organs are working as well.
A normal radiation oncologist does not do surgery but a surgical oncologist does do surgery and treats cancer through surgery which includes removing tumors and nearby tissue during a cancer surgery operation.
Radiation oncologists only treat cancer using medications and radiation therapy which is done by using high energy x rays or other particles that destroy cancer cells.
At your first visit to the oncologist the oncologist will focus on your type of cancer and share which treatment options fit your diagnosis.
Knowing what to expect can make cancer treatment less stressful.
Register and fill out paperwork.
Review current medications and your medical, surgical and family history.
An oncologist will get involved if you've been diagnosed with cancer or the doctor thinks you may have cancer.
Being referred to an oncologist does not always mean you have cancer.
You will likely be referred to an oncologist if your doctor suspects that you have the cancer.
Your primary care physician may carry out tests to determine if you might have cancer.
If there are any signs of cancer, your doctor may recommend visiting an oncologist as soon as possible.
The cancer that has the highest survival rate is prostate cancer.
The underlying factor linking diet and prostate cancer is probably hormonal.
Fats stimulate increased production of testosterone and other hormones, and testosterone acts to speed the growth of prostate cancer.
High testosterone levels may stimulate dormant prostate cancer cells into activity.
When a person has stage 4 lung cancer the person has on average of 3 to 4 months to live if they don't get treatment.
Treatment for the stage 4 lung cancer may help but you can still die within 3 to 4 months with stage 4 lung cancer as it's pretty severe.
The sooner you get lung cancer treatment the better chance you have at surviving it.
Stage 4 lung cancer usually has a poor prognosis.
A study that was done found that depending on the stage of the metastases (spread) the average survival time following diagnosis of stage 4 lung cancer ranged from 6.3 months to 11.4 months
In the beginning most cancer stages progress slowly and then as the cancer progresses into the last stages the cancer progresses faster.
Stage I: Cancer is localized to a small area and hasn't spread to lymph nodes or other tissues.
Stage II: Cancer has grown, but it hasn't spread.
Stage III: Cancer has grown larger and has possibly spread to lymph nodes or other tissues.
Stage IV: Cancer has spread to other organs or areas of your body.
The last stage of cancer is stage IV.
During the last stage of cancer the person in the last stage of cancer will usually experience worsening weakness and exhaustion.
A need to sleep much of the time, often spending most of the day in bed or resting.
Weight loss and muscle thinning or loss.
The warning signs of cancer include.
Unexplained Weight Loss.
Fever.
Fatigue.
Pain.
Skin Changes.
Change In Bowel Habits or Bladder Function.
Unusual Bleeding or Discharge.
Other signs of cancer include.
Change in bowel or bladder habits.
A sore that does not heal.
Unusual bleeding or discharge.
Thickening or lump in the breast or elsewhere.
Indigestion or difficulty in swallowing.
Obvious change in a wart or mole.
Nagging cough or hoarseness.
The symptoms of last stage of cancer are.
Worsening weakness and exhaustion.
A need to sleep much of the time, often spending most of the day in bed or resting.
Weight loss and muscle thinning or loss.
Minimal or no appetite and difficulty eating or swallowing fluids.
Decreased ability to talk and concentrate.
Breathing stops.
Blood pressure cannot be heard.
Pulse stops.
Eyes stop moving and may stay open.
Pupils of the eyes stay large, even in bright light.
Control of bowels or bladder may be lost as the muscles relax.
The highest stage of cancer is stage IV or stage 4 cancer.
Cancer is typically labeled in stages from I to IV, with IV being the most serious stage of cancer.
Stage 4 is the most severe stage of cancer. Metastatic cancer is another name for this stage.
It conveys that the cancer has metastasized spread to distant areas of the body.
Cancer is a group of diseases that cause rapid cell growth.
When you have terminal cancer the average time a person with terminal cancer lives is between 5 to 6 months.
However some people have lived up to 8 months to a year and some people die sooner but it depends on the persons age and how far progressed the terminal cancer is when diagnosed.
The cancers that have the lowest survival rate are brain cancer, pancreatic cancer, mesothelioma, prostate cancer, melanoma skin cancer and testicular cancer.
The types of cancers that are the least treatable include.
Pancreatic cancer.
Mesothelioma.
Gallbladder cancer.
Esophageal cancer.
Liver and intrahepatic bile duct cancer.
Lung and bronchial cancer.
Pleural cancer.
Acute monocytic leukemia.
In some cases you can have cancer for years without knowing it.
Some types of cancers are slow growing and you may not know you have the cancer for months or years later when you show symptoms and get tested and diagnosed.
Some commonly undetected cancers are slow-growing conditions, which gives doctors a better chance at successful treatment.
Others are more aggressive and can be more challenging to treat.
Sometimes, a cancer diagnosis comes out of the blue, with no symptoms at all.
But more often, there are various symptoms that may be warning signs of the disease.
Also, the idea itself of a single miracle cure is a myth, as dozens of different types of cancers each respond differently to treatment. 7.
Cancer is always a painful disease, so if you feel fine, you don't have cancer.
Many types of cancer cause little to no pain, especially in the early stages.
Cancer is a group of diseases involving abnormal cell growth with the potential to invade or spread to other parts of the body.
These contrast with benign tumors, which do not spread.
Cancer is a disease caused when cells divide uncontrollably and spread into surrounding tissues.
Cancer is caused by changes to DNA.
Most cancer-causing DNA changes occur in sections of DNA called genes.
These changes are also called genetic changes.
The most common type of cancer on the list is breast cancer, with 290,560 new cases expected in the United States.
It's rare for cancer to go away on its own without treatment; in almost every case, treatment is required to destroy the cancer cells.
That's because cancer cells do not function the way normal cells do.
The incidence rates for cancer overall climb steadily as age increases, from fewer than 25 cases per 100,000 people in age groups under age 20, to about 350 per 100,000 people among those aged 45–49, to more than 1,000 per 100,000 people in age groups 60 years and older.