Testicular cancer itself is relatively rare, estimated to represent half of one percent of all new cancer cases in the United States. It’s also highly treatable, and the 5-year survival for localized testicular cancer is 99%. The key to survival of this disease is early detection and treatment.
Testicular Cancer Risk Factors
It’s important to know the signs and symptoms of the disease, especially if you have any of the risk factors.
Risk factors include:
- Being between the ages of 20-35
- Having or having had one or more undescended testicle (a testicle that has not moved into its proper position in the scrotum before birth)
- Having an atrophic testicle (a testicle that is smaller in size than normal, although this can be a normal condition as well)
- Having cancer in the other testicle
- Having mumps orchitis (an inflammation of the testes caused by the mumps virus)
- Klinefelter syndrome (a condition caused by having more than one X chromosome)
- Being Caucasian (white or of European, Middle Eastern, or North African ancestry)
Types of Testicular Cancer
Testicular cancer occurs when cancer cells grow in one or both testicles. There are three main types of testicular cancer:
- Seminomas: A type of cancer that begins in cells that make sperm
- Nonseminomas: Often made up of more than one type of cell, and identified according to these different cell types: yolk sac, embryonal cell carcinoma, teratomas, and choriocarcinoma (rare)
- Stromal cell tumors: A rare type of testicular tumor, usually not cancerous and usually occurring during childhood
Symptoms of Testicular Cancer
While testicular cancer can occur without any symptoms, the following can be indicators of the disease:
- A feeling of heaviness or pressure in the scrotum
- Discomfort or pain in the testicle
- Pain or dull ache in the back or lower abdomen or groin
- Enlarged testicle or a change in the way it feels
- Lump or swelling in either testicle
- Fluid or swelling in the scrotum, especially (though not exclusively) if it appears suddenly
Testicular cancer can also trigger gynecomastia (an excess amount of breast tissue); however, this can occur normally in adolescent boys who do not have testicular cancer.
If the cancer has spread outside the testicles, it can also cause symptoms in other parts of the body, such as the lungs, abdomen, pelvis, back, or brain.
If you have noticed any of these symptoms or have risk factors associated with testicular cancer, consult your physician.
For information on how to perform a testicular self-exam, visit the Testicular Cancer Society’s How to do a Monthly Testicular Self-Exam. Additionally, did you know testicular self-exams should be done monthly? To help make sure you don’t forget, consider setting yourself a reminder either on your phone or in your calendar.
If you have questions about the signs and symptoms of testicular cancer, call askSARAH at (844) 482-4812 to speak to a nurse who is specially trained to help with your cancer questions or visit askSARAH online.
It is important to know that the information in this post, including Sarah Cannon’s recommendations for screening, is accurate as of the publishing date.
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