Not all enlargements of the testes are cancerous. More often it is epidedymitis, inflammation of the tubes, leading to and from the testes, or even presence of fluid in the pouch around the testes, the condition called hydrocele, that causes an enlarged testes.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Cancer of the testes occurs in younger men between the years of 15 to 40.<\/p>\n
Cancer of the testes arc mainly of two types:<\/p>\n
\u00b7 Seminoma
\n\u00b7 Teratoma<\/p>\n
Seminoma<\/p>\n
Causes<\/p>\n
It is not known with certainty. Failure of the testes to descend completely from the abdomen where it is situated in the foetus, to the scrotum, is one of the known causes.<\/p>\n
Symptoms<\/p>\n
\u00b7 It is a malignant tumour of the testes, appearing as a swelling, often painless, in the scrotum.
\n\u00b7 Occurs in age group of 30 to 40 years.
\n\u00b7 Enlarged and painful testes.
\n\u00b7 Spread occurs into the lungs.<\/p>\n
Diagnosis<\/p>\n
\u00b7 Routine: Blood: Hb, RBC, TLC, DLC, ESR may show no change.
\n\u00b7 Special: Needle biopsy of involved testes and its examination establishes the diagnosis.
\n\u00b7 Additional: Ultrasound and CT of the liver and lungs indicate whether the cancer has spread in these organs.<\/p>\n
Treatment<\/p>\n
Depends upon the stage of the disease:<\/p>\n
\u00b7 Stage I: Cancer confined to the testes.
\n\u00b7 Stage II: Cancer has spread in the lymph nodes in the abdomen.
\n\u00b7 Stage III: Cancer has spread further and invade the abdomen, liver and lings.
\n\u00b7 Surgery: Removal of the testes, if in stage I, may cure the disease.
\n\u00b7 Radiation: If the stage is I or II, radiation is done over the lymph nodes in the abdomen, 4 to 5 exposures a week for 3 to 4 weeks. Cure rate is over 90 per cent.
\n\u00b7 Chemotherapy: Stage HI cancer needs extensive surgery of the parts involved and radiation, as well as chemotherapy.<\/p>\n
Teratoma<\/p>\n
This tumour spreads from the testes via the lymph channels as well as the bloodstream.<\/p>\n
Causes<\/p>\n
It is not known.<\/p>\n
Diagnosis<\/p>\n
\u00b7 Routine: Blood: Hb, RBC, TLC, DLC, ESR may be normal.
\n\u00b7 Special: Increased levels of Human chorionic gonadotrophin (HCG) and Alfa fetoprotein (AFP), which are produced by this cancer, are increased.
\n\u00b7 Needle biopsy examination for cancer cells can confirm the diagnosis.
\n\u00b7 Additional: X-ray chest and CT scan of the lungs, to see if the cancer has spread there.<\/p>\n
Blood tests to measure liver and bone marrow function. If the function is deranged, it indicates the spread of cancer over there.<\/p>\n
Treatment<\/p>\n
Staging is more or less similar to that of seminoma.<\/p>\n
Surgery: Removal of the testes and the extensive removal of the lymph glands from the abdomen, cures over 90 per cent in stage I and over 80 per cent in stage II.<\/p>\n
Radiation: Radiation is given to the lymph glands in the abdomen in all stages of the disease.<\/p>\n
Chemotherapy: It is used in stage II and HI. High doses or a combination of drugs like Cis-plastin, Bleomycin and Vinblastine, cure a high percentage of cases. Side-effects of chemotherapy are fairly large. These are:<\/p>\n
\u00b7 Feeling of fatigue.
\n\u00b7 Nausea and vomiting.
\n\u00b7 Loss of hair.
\n\u00b7 Damage to the lungs and subsequent breathlessness. Increased risk of infection.
\n\u00b7 Prognosis
\n\u00b7 Detected early, the cure rate is high.<\/p>\n
Early Detection<\/p>\n
Signs & Symptoms<\/p>\n
Enlarged and painful testes in a man between 20 to 40 years old.<\/p>\n
Investigations<\/p>\n
Needle biopsy examination.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Not all enlargements of the testes are cancerous. More often it is epidedymitis, inflammation of the tubes, leading to and from the testes, or even presence of fluid in the pouch around the testes, the condition called hydrocele, that causes an enlarged testes.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[30],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4818","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-cancer-treatment"],"yoast_head":"\n