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Testicular cancer occurs in the testicles (a loose bag of skin located inside the penis) which produces male sex hormones and sperm. Compared to other types of cancer in men testicular cancer is rare, but it is more common in young men. There are two main types of testicular cancer,

Seminomas: This type of cancer mostly develops in older men, but it is not as aggressive as nonseminoma.

Non-seminomas: This type of cancer grows and spread rapidly tend to develop earlier in life. There are different types of non-seminomas tumors, including yolk sac tumor, Embryonal carcinoma, Choriocarcinoma.

Causes and Risk Factors

The doctors are not sure about the specific cause of testicular cancer, it occurs when the testicular cells become abnormal in one or both the testes.

There are some risk factors which may raise a man’s risk of developing testicular cancer. These include:

• Cryptorchidism: If the testicle has not moved down when the born, the risk increases
• Congenital abnormalities: abnormalities in testicles or penis
• Family history
• Inguinal hernia
• Abnormal testicular development
• Mumps orchitis: it is a complication in which one or both the testicles become inflamed
• Having testicular cancer

Symptoms

The signs and symptoms of testicular cancer do not normally appear until a later stage. The most common symptoms of testicular cancer include:

• Testicular pain or discomfort
• A fluid collection in the scrotum
• Aches in abdomen, groin or back
• Testicular enlargement
• A sensation of heaviness in the scrotum
• A difference between one testicle and the other
• An increase in the firmness of the testicles

Diagnosis

Testicular cancer is most often detected by the patient themselves, either discovering a lump or swelling in the testicle. To find out whether the lump is cancerous or not, the doctor may recommend the following tests:

• Ultrasound: to create an image of the testicles and scrotum
• Serum tumor marker test: It is a blood test to measure the amount of tumor markers or biomarkers in blood, which helps to detect the presence of cancer
• CT scan
• MRI scan
• PET scan
• Biopsy

Treatment

There are many different types of treatment options available for patients with testicular cancer, some are standard (treatments that are currently used) and some are being tested in clinical trials.

The following are the five different types of treatment options that are standard (currently used):

• Surgery: Surgical removal of the testis (inguinal orchiectomy)
• Chemotherapy: the treatment method which makes use of drugs to stop the growth of cancer cells
• Radiation therapy: The type of cancer treatment which makes use of X rays or other types of radiations to kill the cancer cells.
• High dose chemotherapy with stem cell transplant

Dr. Shiva Kumar is one of the expert oncology surgeons in Bangalore, with a deep knowledge of oncology. He is now working as consultant oncologist in North Bangalore Hospital, Bangalore. Here you will get the best and advanced treatment for testicular cancer at an affordable cost.
   

Authored By : Dr. Shiva Kumar Uppala