Cancer Screening

Cancer Screening comes before cancer treatment.
Asking Questions about Cancer Diagnosis.
How accurate is the Screening.

Why do you need to screen for cancer?

Before you even decide to any form of cancer treatment, you need to know exactly what is happening in your body.

The best way to find out is by Cancer Screening. It is a definite analysis of what your body is going through, is it cancer or not, is the cancer malignant or benign, how extensive is the cancer etc.

Some of the signs and symptoms covered in other pages may indicate that you require a full medical check-up as to why you are experiencing these symptoms, but a proper cancer screening will be conclusive.

An early cancer screening is important so that you are not ignorant of the progression of cancer from early stage to advance stage. There are many people who show cancer symptoms but are reluctant to go for screening, thinking that hopefully cancer will disappear by itself. This is self-denial and foolishness.

Talk to your physician about what kind of cancer screenings are available because an early diagnosis will mean that you do not need to suffer the healing reactions severely - even if you have decided to go for natural cancer treatment.

Types of Cancer screening

Different types of cancer screening tests have risks and benefits.

At present some of the popular methods of cancer screening, in no preferential order, are as follows:

• DNA Test. This is a complex test that checks for mutated cells that are shed by cancers or pre-cancerous polyps. It checks the DNA of suspected cells against those of normal cells. This is recommended for those with genetic cancer susceptibility condition. You will need to avoid eating foods or medicine to have a more accurate result.

• Colonoscopy. This type of cancer screening uses a thin flexible tube that is connected to a fiber optic video camera for looking inside the colon. As the name suggest it is inserted into your rectum and colon, and allowing the doctor to observe the tissues surrounding your entire colon. The tube can also be used to remove polyps and even 1 millimeter small tissues during the procedure. It gives a visual diagnosis. Some countries have made it a routine screening test for people of 50 years and above.

• Virtual Colonoscopy. This test uses a computerized tomography (CT) machine to take 2D and 3D pictures of your colon. There is no inserting of tube and totally non-invasive. The images are then compiles and combined digitally in a computer to check for polyps and cancer. The ability to diagnose is not as thorough as the colonoscopy. It does not allow biopsy, polyp or tumor removal. It cannot detect growths smaller than 5 millimeters. If the doctor finds any abnormal growth in your colon, a traditional colonoscopy is still required for more detail observation.

• Sigmoidoscopy. In this type of cancer screening, a thin flexible hollow tube is equipped with light and video camera at the end. It is inserted into the rectum and the video of the probe is recorded. The procedure is similar to colonoscopy except that the colonoscopy can observe up to 5 feet or the entire colon, while the sigmoidoscopy can only observe up to two feet of the colon. Some physician prefers this to colonoscopy to avoid bleeding and puncture of a sensitive colon wall.

• Computed Tomography (CAT scan or CT-Scan). CAT scans are similar to X-rays except in moderate dosages of radiation. They are used to look for things such as internal bleeding or abnormal growth. The scan is not painful. The patient lies down on a narrow table which slides into a scanner. The scan may require the use of a dye material to improve the visibility of certain organ tissues or blood vessels. Lately, there have been some controversies on the safety of CAT scans and whether they increase the risk of other cancer cells due to exposure to radiation.

• Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI). MRI uses radio waves and magnetic fields to produce an image. It uses no radiation unlike the CAT scans. MRIs are often used to observe bones, joints and the brain. The patient lies down on a narrow table which slides into the middle of the MRI scanner. The scan is not painful and considered safer than a CAT scan. For those with metal implants and cardiac pacemakers, MRI is not suitable because the strong magnetic field can disrupt the metal equipment.

• X-ray. X-ray or X radiation is the oldest form of observing internal organs and structures using radioactive material and a photo-sensitive plate. It can be used to observe abnormal growths or tumors in the internal body parts. X-rays are not painful. The patient stand, sit or lie down on a table while the X-ray machine takes a picture of the body area using electromagnetic radiation for observation. The patient is usually given a special gown or protective material such as lead, to protect other areas of the body from radiation. X-rays are considered dangerous and limiting the use of it is highly recommended.

• Ultrasound. Ultrasound machines can be used for cancer screening besides using them for observing fetus inside pregnant mothers. By analyzing the density of the images, they can be used to observe life movements of body parts besides any abnormal growth of tumors internally. Ultrasounds are not painful and the frequency used is always above the audible range of human hearing. The machine uses a high frequency sound wave to reflect back from internal organs to create an image on a digital screen. A special jelly is applied to the skin and the hand held sensor is moved over the skin projecting the sound waves inside. The images normally require an experienced user to interpret. Of the many high-tech machines for digital imaging, ultrasound is considered one of the safer alternatives and it's cheaper too.

• Urine test. Urine testing or urinalysis of cancer usually accompanies blood test. The urine test is actually an array of medical diagnosis. They can tell the doctor whether the kidneys, bladder, urethra, ureter and the renal pelvis are in proper function. The urine sample is collected in a cup and then sent to the laboratory for analysis.

• Biopsy. A biopsy is a sample of body tissue extracted for medical examination, looking for the presence of cancer, inflammation, the presence or absence of substances or by-products of cancer cell activities. Biopsies can be taken from anywhere including lymph nodes, bone marrow, kidneys, mouth, colon, nose or ears. Some biopsies need minor surgery to extract the body tissues for study. Diagnosis of cancer by biopsies is fairly conclusive. One observation is that normal cells look uniform with similar sizes and orderly organization. Cancer cells look less orderly, with different sizes and have no organization. There is an on-going investigation that biopsies done on malignant tumors may cause the cancer cells to spread faster.

• Blood test. Blood tests are done by extracting a sample of your blood with an injection syringe. The doctor will draw the blood by inserting the needle into a vein in the arm or hand, and keep it in a sealed container for laboratory analysis. A bandage and a cotton swab with alcohol are placed over the inserted area to prevent bacterial infection.

• Physical examination. Your doctor or you (clinical or self examination) can examine areas of your body that have lumps which may indicate a tumor. You know your own body better than anyone, and any abnormalities can be easily observed. Look for changes in skin color, lumps under the skin or an enlargement of your body organs that may indicate presence of cancer tumors. The checking of symptoms together with an understanding of medical history can help to determine a correct diagnosis of your body condition. Your body has the ability to communicate with you what is happening within and without.

• Bone scan. A bone scan is a nuclear scanning test looking for any abnormalities in the bones. It can help to diagnose cancer of the bones or any damage to bones. The patient is injected with a small amount of radioactive material and then scanned with a gamma camera, which is a device sensitive to the radiation emitted by the injected material. Not all tumors can be easily seen on the bone scan. About half of the injected radioactive material will leave the body through the urine. The rest will remain in the bones. Though the amount of radioactive material used is small, many have questioned the long term effect of the material inside the body. Pregnant patients should be cautioned on radioactive injection due to damage to fetus.

• Mammography. Mammography uses low doses of X-rays to examine the woman's breast for breast cancer. The goal is to enable early detection of cancer by the detection of tumor masses or calcification of breast tissues. Early detection can help to reduce the mortality rate due to breast cancer. It is recommended that middle-age women should have their breasts scanned regularly. Many famous celebrities survived their breast cancers due to early detection such as Kylie Minogue, Olivia Newton John, and Christina Applegate. Many have now voiced their concern about radiation exposure associated with mammography. A better and comparative alternative seems to be Thermography.

• Thermography. Thermography or thermal imaging uses a computerized equipment to create a digital map of your body that shows heat patterns. The body tissues or cancer tumors will be scanned by the infra-red camera that measures your body surface temperature. The thermal images (called thermograms) will be analyzed for abnormalities that may be signs of cancer in your body. Many clinics have opted for thermography over mammography in detection of breast cancer. It is interesting that thermography can be used to detect breast cancer in men while mammography cannot. Thermography has also been known to detect early cancers while mammography cannot.

• Pap smear test. A Pap smear test is studying a sample of the cervical cells over a microscope slide and looking for any pathogens that may be associated with cancer. It is used as a cancer screening for the detection of any pre-cancerous abnormal tissue and to prevent cervical cancer. Smear tests are sometimes done on the anus as well as the vagina.

• Colposcopy. Colposcopy is similar to colonoscopy except that the tube is inserted into the cervix to observe the tissues of the vagina and vulva. The camera looks for abnormal tissue growth and also capable of direct biopsies.

• Radionuclide scan. A radionuclide scan uses a radioactive drug that is injected into the vein. The chemical drug travels through the bloodstream and attaches itself to the rumor cells. A radiation measuring device then detects the radioactive drug and makes pictures to show where the tumor cells are in the body.

Some screening tests may cause problems. For example, colon cancer screening with sigmoidoscopy or colonoscopy may cause abrasive tears in the linings of the intestines.

Some screening tests cannot be used as a stand-alone definitive test. They need to be coupled with other tests. This can help to overcome "false-positive test" results and "false-negative test" results. A false-positive test result shows that there is cancer when there really is no cancer. A false-negative test result shows that everything is normal even though there is cancer.

After Cancer Screening

A proper cancer screening done will indicate whether cancer cells are present or absent. If they are present, it can also tell the stage of cancer development, whether it is stage I or stage IV, with higher numerals indicating more advanced cancer.

After screening for cancer, it is your right to know what the results of these tests are.

Some of the questions that you may want to ask are:

1. Do I have any cancer?

2. How did the cancer screening come to the conclusion that I have cancer?

3. What type of cancer do I have, i.e. if you have cancer?

4. What stage of cancer am I in?

5. How does my stage of cancer affect the urgency of dealing with the disease?

6. What other specialist physicians do I need to talk to? For example, if my cancer is in my throat, do I need to see an ENT doctor?

7. What were the tests done during the cancer screening and what did they show, especially those that involved laboratorial analysis?

8. Are there any more tests needed to be carried out as a form of double confirmation?

9. What are the recommended steps to take from the oncologist point of view?

10. Does the doctor support other Complimentary and Alternative Methods of Natural Healing of Cancer? Important! If he doesn't you may have to seek another doctor who does.

Sometimes you may need to seek a second opinion from another physician so that you can hear a different approach on how to tackle your cancer treatment.

Just like you are reading these pages to learn from others who have overcame cancer using the natural cancer treatment, you need to arm yourself with as much knowledge as possible, so that you can make a wise and informed decision. Read and research before you go for the conventional cancer treatment that may be recommended by your doctor. You deserve to know that there are other better alternatives for healing of cancer.

Further Reading:

Blood Test and Cancer
How do you know you have cancer? Is a Blood test a good indicator for cancer? It is not 100% conclusive but some think it has some value.

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