Cancer symptoms vary based on the location and size of the growth, with common symptoms including visible growths, pain, and flu-like symptoms. Skin cancers have their own set of symptoms, while brain neoplasms manifest in unique ways. A biopsy is needed to determine if the growth is cancerous.
Cancers can grow anywhere on a person’s body, either in plain sight or hidden from view, affecting that person’s health and bodily functions in various ways. The exact location and size of the growth of the neoplasm determine the symptoms a person suffers from. Common symptoms of the malignancy include visible growths, pain, and flu-like symptoms. Some cancers produce no symptoms and are detected only during regular physical checkups.
The general symptoms of cancer could be mistaken for a viral infection, such as the flu. The growth can trigger an immune system response, causing the body to react with symptoms such as fever, fatigue and chills. Patients may also experience unexplained weight loss, night sweats, or general pain and discomfort. Cancers that grow on specific organs might interfere with organ function, such as lung cancers that cause coughing or regular shortness of breath.
Skin cancers have their own set of symptoms, depending on the type of cancer the person has developed. Basal cell carcinoma appears as a smooth, raised area of skin that did not exist before. The skin often cracks, causing bleeding. Squamous cell carcinoma develops on skin that has been exposed to the sun, with the skin thickening and becoming red and scaly. Melanoma appears on the skin as brown, black, pink, or red sores, or a mole that appears suddenly or begins to grow.
The symptoms of brain neoplasm manifest in unique ways, which change depending on the size of the growth and its exact location in the brain. Patients commonly suffer from general symptoms such as unexplained vomiting, chronic headaches and insomnia. A person might also have one pupil that is consistently dilated more than the other, indicating growth on the same side of the brain. More serious brain malignancy symptoms include sudden personality changes, memory loss, and the person suddenly becoming paralyzed on one side of the body. With children, a neoplasm can cause the skull to expand in size as the growth broadens.
The symptoms of the tumor do not necessarily indicate that the growth is benign or malignant. A doctor must take a biopsy or sample the growth for testing to determine whether or not it is cancerous. Obtaining a biopsy can be a simple hospitalization procedure if the cancer is in an easily accessible area of the body, or it can involve surgery if the cancer is on an internal organ.
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