Health & Wellness

16 Early Warning Signs of Cancer in your Body Should not Ignore

No one should ignore the warning signs of cancer that might lead to early diagnosis and a cure, maybe. In the case of cancer, there is an uncontrolled growth of cells in the body that occurs when the normal restraining mechanism does not work as expected to lead the formation of new and abnormal cells without recycling the older ones.

The continuous formation of new cells overlaps the older cells forming a huge mass of tissue that is called a tumor. Generally, this is not an instantaneous process and takes time.

While this is happening inside your body, it will try to tell you that something is going wrong inside by various warnings, that must not be taken lightly as there might be the formation of cancer cells taking place.

 Warning Signs of Cancer

To help you out we have listed 16 warning signs of cancer you should not ignore, and if you are suffering from any of the below signs, then it’s highly recommended to get yourself checked by your doctor.

1. Formation of Lumps or Bumps in your Body:

Many times there is the random formation of lumps in your body at various places, many of those vanish with time but some remain there and won’t go away, no matter whatever you do to treat them.

These lumps or bumps might be one of the foremost warning signs that a cancer cell is forming and those lumps are the component of the tissue mass. (1)

If you have any strange lump on your body, then you must go straight to your doctor to get it checked as soon as possible.

2. A Cough or Dry Throat

Coughing is quite common these days with cold and flu being the most plebeian disease. However, on average, the symptoms of cold and flu completely fade away within a week.

But, if you face the problem of a persistent cough and your throat feels dry and rough, then it might be a symptom of laryngeal, thyroid cancer or lymphoma. (2)

Thus, in such a situation you must go and see your doctor without wasting any time.

3. Recurrent Fever or Infections

If you quite often suffer from fever and other infections, it might be a sign of leukemia or blood cancer.

Blood cancer is one of the most deleterious types of cancer and is not treatable if not detected at an earlier stage.

The formation of this cancer stats from the bone marrow and leads to the production of peculiar WBC or White Blood Cells that obstructs the body’s immune system from fighting infections.

4. Enervation and Fatigue

This can easily be one of the most common symptoms of any type of cancer and usually occur quite often.

If you are frequently feeling too much weakness and fatigue, even after having a proper healthy diet, then you must go and see your doctor for further tests.

These symptoms are seen in combination with other symptoms to figure out the type of cancer.

5. Hindrance in Swallowing Food

If, while eating or drinking any stuff you feel very uncomfortable and unable to swallow your food properly then it’s one of the symptoms associated with throat cancer. (3)

The formation of cancer cells in throat makes it congested and uneasy for anyone suffering from throat to eat or drink.

Many times this difficulty is caused by other factors and vanish automatically. But if it does not, you go and see your doctor for the same.

Also Read: 15 Common Foods that Cause Cancer You Should Avoid

6. Alteration in Bowel Routine

The bowel movements can be altered for many reasons depending on the type and quantity of food you eat, and the medications that you are using.

Many people often experience the change in the time, amount, and size of their bowels and don’t pay much attention to these minor symptoms. But, these are not really minor and might be a sign of colon cancer.

7. Red Blood Urine

Many people suffer from UTI or Urinary Tract Infections that are most commonly occurs in women. It is not necessary that it will only happen in females but, males can also face this issue.

If anyone is experiencing the UTI, they might see that the color of their urine is red and often feels pain while urinating. The UTI is treatable completely.

Blood in the urine (hematuria) is normally the early warning signs of cancer (Bladder). But, even after taking all the proper medications the blood in urine persists then there might be a chance of having prostate, bladder, or kidney cancer.

Related: The Color Of Urine Says Everything About Your Health

8. Drop-in Weight Without Any Reason

Whether you are a fitness-oriented person or a regular one, random weight gain and loss are quite common depending on the diet you are taking.

But, in case you are taking the same diet daily for quite a long without any bodily changes, a sudden you start to lose weight, might be a concern.

This could be the symptom of stomach, lung, pancreatic, or esophageal cancer.

9. Blood while Coughing

Coughing might be annoying at times of cold and flu, but if the coughing persists for a longer period of time, it might be an issue of concern.

If your coughing is persistent and you often see blood in your cough, beware, it might be the beginning of lung cancer (4) and such condition must be get checked by a professional without any delay.

Also Read: Remedies for Cold and Cough in Babies

10. Abdominal Weight Gain

There is a condition where many people complain about getting a bloated stomach or the collection of huge fat in the abdominal area.

This might happen as you grow older and eat a high-fat diet. But, if neither applies to you and you are getting a bloated stomach then you must get it examined by a doctor. This type of condition is an early sign of Ovarian cancer.

11. Red, Inflamed, and Puffy Breasts

With breast cancer being a matter of solicitude among women, men are not spared by this either. Millions of people die due to breast cancer and those who survive might have to lose their breasts.

If your nipple is itchy, red, swollen, turned sideways, or any such anomaly, then it might be a symptom of breast cancer and should not be ignored.

12. Protrusion of Face:

In the condition of lung cancer, many people have reported swollen up or rending of their face.

This happens due to the formation of small tumors in the lungs that hinders the flow of blood from the chest to the head making it swell due to blood deprivation.

If you are suffering from such an unexplained swelling in your face then you must not wait for another day and run to the doctor immediately.

13. Change in the Appearance of Nails

Nails, though small is capable of telling you about three type of cancer including skin cancer in case a brown or black dot is forming under the nails, liver cancer in case your nails have become pale or white and lung cancer if your finger has enlarged with curved down nail tips.

In any of this situation, it is highly recommended to get yourself checked by a doctor.

14. Change in the Appearance of Skin Moles

Yet another sign of getting skin cancer is the change in the appearance of a mole or wart present on your body.

Cancer Moles and Mole Removal
Cancerous Mole

If you have any of the moles on your body changed weirdly then don’t take it lightly as it might be the beginning of skin cancer.

15. Heavy Sweating During Night

If you are sleeping in a well air-conditioned room and still sweat abruptly during the midnight, then it might be the beginning of lymphoma.

Many people who have Hodgkin lymphoma cancer sweat a lot during the night that they often have to change their clothes in the midst of the night. If you are one of them, please do consult a doctor as soon as possible.

16. Uncontrollable Pain in Bones or Joints

This is usually a symptom of blood cancer that might be leukemia, lymphoma, or myeloma.

If you are suffering from persistent pain in your bone, joints, ribs, or back then you must, without any further delay, get yourself checked by a doctor. A simple blood test might reveal in case you have blood cancer.

Prevention is Better than Cure

If you are suffering from any of the above conditions then it is highly recommended to get yourself diagnosed by a professional to make sure if there is a reason for concern.

But why wait for cancer to happen if we can prevent it right away with proper measures and diet. One such effective cancer preventive is Vitamin D that is very good at keeping your insulin levels down and preventing you from prostate cancer.

Apart from a healthy diet, regular exercise should be performed to yourself fit and fine that will make your immune system tougher and helpful in fighting the cancer cells.

 

Dr Maria

MD. Board Certified physician. Fellowship In Family Medicine UK. 8 years of medical experience in Lifestyle-related health disorders. Graduated from AIIMS – All India Institute Of Medical Science, INDIA

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