Testicular cancer is one of the most common neoplasms in young men, between 15 and 35 years old, and its most common symptom is the formation of a nodule – usually painless – the size of a pea. To raise public awareness of the importance of prevention and early diagnosis, we interviewed the urologist Conrado Alvarenga, who brought us important information about the main ways of preventing the disease and about the testicular cancer symptoms.
In this text, you will find fundamental tips to take care of the health of the testicles and avoid testicular cancer. Follow!
Is testicular cancer a fairly common disease? Are there risk groups?
According to Dr. Alvarenga, testicular cancer accounts for about 5% of malignant tumors in men, which underscores the importance of raising awareness about this disease. men with infertility need extra attention, as this condition is associated with an increased risk of testicular cancer.
This alert is even more relevant when the man reports having had cryptorchidism in childhood, which is the delay in the descent of the testicles into the testicular sac. Family history of the disease, that is, a grandfather or father diagnosed with testicular cancer, is another important risk factor.
Are there ways of prevention? What precautions are important?
The main weapon in the fight against testicular cancer is early diagnosis and treatment, when the nodules are still small and easily removed surgically. As there are no specific measures for the prevention of this type of cancer, a routine evaluation by a urologist is always recommended for everyone, especially for people who are in risk groups, that is, people with infertility and cryptorchidism.
What are the main symptoms of testicular cancer?
The symptoms of testicular cancer that should call attention and motivate a visit to the doctor’s office are:
– Painless lump or swelling in the testicle;
– feeling of heaviness in the scrotum;
– pain or discomfort in the lower back, lower abdomen, groin, testicle or scrotum;
– in cases of children, early puberty.
Is this a high mortality disease? How does the treatment work?
If you are wondering if testicular cancer can kill, we have the answer: this disease is not usually fatal, but it is important that it is diagnosed and treated early so that major complications do not occur.
During the consultation, the diagnosis will be made based on the symptoms presented by the patient and on the results of tests that may be requested by the professional. From there, it will be time to start treatment. “Treatment consists of removing, in some cases, the tumor or the affected testicle itself. Some patients need adjuvant treatments such as chemotherapy and radiotherapy,” says Dr. Alvarenga.
Source: cuidadospelavida.com.br
