Blood cancer: first symptoms, diagnosis, treatment and survival

Blood cancer is a disease that involves the presence of tumors in the hematopoietic system, lymphatic system and bone marrow. Blood cancer, Wikipedia divides into three types, each of which has its own symptoms. We are talking about leukemia, lymphoma and multiple myeloma. Malignant formations of blood cells are called leukemia, tumors that arise in the lymphatic system are defined as lymphoma, and myeloma is commonly called malignant formations that appear in the blood plasma.

Blood cancer is characterized by disturbances in hematopoiesis, as well as the formation of immature active cells not only in the blood, but also in the liver, spleen, bone marrow and lymph nodes. This disease affects people of various age groups, including the elderly and newborn infants. Blood cancer can be acute or chronic. Unfortunately, the result of the acute form of the disease is the death of the patient after a fairly short period of time.

Changes in the blood during cancer occur when one single cell begins to mutate and thus becomes a diseased cell that can “infect” other blood cells. The body's defenses, which for some reason are weakened, are unable to identify the mutating cell and do not take any action to eliminate it.

A general blood test for cancer can determine the presence of changes in the composition of the blood that indicate the disease. Chronic lymphoblastic leukemia is the most common blood cancer. Most often it affects men in old age, although recent medical reports indicate that this disease is “getting younger” and its victims are middle-aged and young people.

Changes in the blood caused by cancer mean that the blood does not clot well, so even the smallest scratch can bleed heavily. With lymphoblastic leukemia, the patient easily bruises, the tonsils, liver and spleen become enlarged, appetite disappears, which leads to the patient losing weight. The problem is that this disease is somewhat subtle in nature, the symptoms of which may periodically subside or become more pronounced. This leads to the fact that the patient does not take the changes occurring in his body seriously enough, so only a general blood test will show cancer, although most often the patient is prescribed it due to other diseases.

Blood cancer is not always easy to diagnose, because often the symptoms of blood cancer are similar to symptoms that may appear in other diseases or conditions of the patient. The presence of the disease can be determined by carefully studying the symptoms that bother the patient, and a general blood test will show cancer.

What is blood cancer?

Usually this is a combination of various pathologies, due to which the hematopoietic system is completely suppressed, and as a result, healthy bone marrow cells are replaced by diseased ones. In this case, almost all cells can be replaced. Cancers in the blood usually divide and multiply rapidly, thereby replacing healthy cells.

There are both chronic blood cancer and acute leukemia, usually a malignant neoplasm in the blood has different types depending on the type of damage to certain groups of cells in the blood. The aggressiveness of the cancer itself and the speed of its spread also depend on this.

Treatment options

Treatment of blood cancer is a rather complex process that takes many years. It must be remembered that not all types of disease can be treated; some of them, especially in the last stages, cannot be cured. Periodically, the cancer may recede, and the person feels some relief. However, at this stage it is impossible to stop treatment under any circumstances, since remission will definitely end and the disease will return with even greater force.

In the treatment of oncological diseases, methods such as radiation and chemotherapy are mainly used. Cytostatics are also used to slow down the proliferation of defective cells and prevent the development of tumors and metastases.

Chemotherapy use

Treatment of hemoblastoses necessarily involves the use of this method, which allows you to destroy pathological cells and stop their growth. Cancerous tissues, unlike healthy ones, have an increased ability to reproduce and a high degree of vital activity. Therefore, the effect of the drugs used is aimed at suppressing the ability of cells to divide.

Chemotherapy is carried out in two stages:

• Induction phase. The duration of treatment is 2-6 months, after which in most cases patients go into remission. The activity of cancer cells is significantly reduced, and their number is reduced. However, in the absence of maintenance therapy, they can again have a negative effect on the body.
• The second phase is maintenance therapy, which lasts for three years. The main goal of this treatment is to destroy the remaining cancer tissue.

Treatment is carried out in a hospital setting to avoid bleeding and blood poisoning. The drugs used in chemotherapy suppress the production of white blood cells, and therefore the patient needs frequent blood transfusions. In addition, these highly toxic medications destroy not only pathogenic cells, but also healthy ones - cells of the reproductive organs, gastrointestinal tract, hair follicles and bone marrow. All this leads to side effects such as diarrhea, anemia, hair loss, and vomiting.

In some cases, the course of treatment with chemicals is repeated, but this is done using stronger substances. This is necessary when cancer cells lose sensitivity to previously used chemicals. If such treatment is not carried out, the person will die within a few months.

Bone marrow transplantation

This method is used if chemotherapy is ineffective. Donor healthy bone marrow cells are injected into the patient using a dropper. Before the procedure, cancer cells present in the patient’s body are destroyed using chemicals, which will avoid the rebirth of malignant clones.

Bone marrow transplant surgery is considered very dangerous and is performed only in extreme cases, since there is a huge risk of infection for the patient. At the end of the procedure, the patient is admitted to the intensive care unit, where he remains until his condition is completely normalized.

Chronic leukemia

Typically, the disease modifies leukocytes; when they mutate, they become granular. The disease itself progresses rather slowly. Later, as a result of replacing diseased leukocytes with healthy ones, the hematopoietic function is disrupted.

Subspecies

• Megakaryocytic leukemia . The stem cell changes, and multiple pathologies appear in the bone marrow. Subsequently, diseased cells appear, which divide very quickly and fill the blood only with them. The number of platelets increases.
• Chronic myeloid leukemia. The most interesting thing is that men are more affected by this disease. The process begins after the mutation of bone marrow cells.
• Chronic lymphocytic leukemia. This disease is asymptomatic at first. Leukocytes accumulate in organ tissues, and there are a lot of them.
• Chronic monocytic leukemia. This form does not increase the number of leukocytes, but the number of monocytes increases.

Changes in peripheral blood

Cytomorphological study of peripheral blood cells allows us to obtain the necessary information about the disease in hemoblastoses, in the case of acute leukemia, since all elements of hematopoiesis undergo certain changes. To solve the problem of how to determine blood cancer, it is worth first of all studying anemia, which almost always develops with acute leukemia. The nature of anemia is normochromic or hyperchromic, in more rare cases it is hypochromic and is characterized by deepening as the disease progresses. Thrombocytopenia is another sign of acute leukemia. The number of platelets during the treatment of the disease is subject to cyclic fluctuations. If at the beginning of the disease these indicators correspond to the norm, then during the period of exacerbation of the disease their number decreases, and during the period of remission it increases.

At the time of the initial diagnosis of acute leukemia, leukocytosis is accompanied by a high level of blast cells and is observed in less than a third of cases of the disease. Much more often, the number of leukocytes in the initial blood test is normal or leukopenia with relative lymphocytosis is determined. Blast cells can very often be found among the lymphoid elements, while it is possible that there are no blast cells at all. Leukopenic forms account for about 1/2 of all cases of acute leukemia. And the number of neutrophils can reach a minimum level. Due to the processes of suppression of normal hematopoiesis accompanying this disease, in acute leukemia the development of anemia, granulocytopenia, and thrombocytopenia occurs. In addition, the autoimmune cytological mechanism plays its role in the process of cytopenia, which usually complicates the course of leukemia.

Acute leukemia, which begins as leukopenic, maintains this trend throughout the entire illness. There are cases when leukopenia gives way to leukocytosis. This occurs in cases where the process progresses in the absence of treatment or, conversely, under the influence of cytostatic therapy. Leukemic gaping is also characteristic of acute leukemia, which suggests the absence of transitional elements between those cells that are mature leukocytes and the cells that constitute the morphological substrate of the disease.

Acute leukemia

In general, there is already an increase in the number of blood cells, while they grow very quickly and divide quickly. This type of cancer develops faster, which is why acute leukemia is considered a more severe form for the patient.

Subspecies

• Lymphoblastic leukemia. This cancer is more common in children aged 1 to 6 years. In this case, lymphocytes are replaced with diseased ones. Accompanied by severe intoxication and decreased immunity.
• Erythromyeloid leukemia. In the bone marrow, an increased growth rate of erythroblasts and normoblasts begins. The number of red cells increases.
• Myeloblastic leukemia. Usually there is a breakdown at the DNA level of blood cells. As a result, diseased cells completely displace healthy ones. In this case, a deficiency of any of the main ones begins: leukocytes, platelets, erythrocytes.
• Megakaryoblastic leukemia. Rapid increase in megakaryoblasts and undifferentiated blasts in the bone marrow. In particular, it affects children with Down syndrome.
• Monoblastic leukemia . During this disease, the temperature constantly rises and general intoxication of the body occurs in a patient with blood cancer.

Prevention and recommendations

Since the exact cause has not been discovered, there are no specific recommendations for preventing blood cancer, but there are some general guidelines to follow.

Exposure to excessive radiation and hazardous chemicals should be limited. The risk of blood cancer may increase in patients receiving radiation or chemotherapy for other types of cancer.

Research shows that benzene (found in unleaded gasoline), asbestos and pesticides may increase the risk of certain types of blood cancer. If you have close physical contact with benzene or other hazardous chemicals, take precautions by wearing protective clothing and gloves.

Causes of blood cancer

As you probably know, blood is made up of several main cells that perform their functions. Red blood cells deliver oxygen to the tissues of the whole body, platelets allow us to clog wounds and crevices, and white blood cells protect our body from antibodies and foreign organisms.

Cells are born in the bone marrow, and in the early stages they are more susceptible to external factors. Any cell can turn into a cancer cell, which will then endlessly divide and multiply. Moreover, these cells have a different structure and do not perform their function 100%.

The exact factors by which cell mutation can occur are not yet known to scientists, but there are some suspicions:

• Radiation and background radiation in cities.
• Ecology
• Chemical substances.
• Incorrect course of medications and drugs.
• Poor nutrition.
• Serious illnesses, such as HIV.
• Obesity.
• Smoking and alcohol.

Why is cancer dangerous? Cancer cells initially begin to mutate in the bone marrow, where they endlessly divide and take nutrients from healthy cells, plus releasing large amounts of waste products.

When there are too many of them, these cells begin to spread through the blood into all tissues of the body. Blood cancer usually comes from two diagnoses: leukemia and lymphosarcoma. But the correct scientific name is still precisely “hemoblastosis”, that is, the tumor arose as a result of a mutation of hematopoietic cells.

Hemoblastoses that appear in the bone marrow are called leukemia. Previously, it was also called leukemia or leukemia - this is when a large number of immature leukocytes appear in the blood.

If the tumor originates outside the bone marrow, it is called hematosarcoma. There is also a rarer disease, lymphocytoma, when the tumor affects mature lymphocytes. Blood cancer or hemablastosis has a bad course due to the fact that cancer cells can affect any organ, and in any form the damage will necessarily fall on the bone marrow.

Once metastasis begins and malignant cells spread to different types of tissue, they subsequently behave differently, and this makes the treatment itself worse. The fact is that each such cell perceives treatment in its own way and can react differently to chemotherapy.

What is the difference between malignant blood cancer and benign one? In fact, benign tumors do not spread to other organs and the disease itself occurs without symptoms. Malignant cells grow very quickly and metastasize even faster.

Diagnostic measures

Leukemia belongs to a group of diseases that are very difficult to recognize. To establish an accurate diagnosis, it is necessary to undergo a complete examination of the body, which includes the following activities:

• consultation with a specialist - oncologist, hematologist;
• biochemical and general blood test;
• bone marrow examination - performed through sternal puncture or trepanobiopsy;
• cytogenetic study to determine the degree of aggression of cancer cells;
• immunophenotyping, which identifies a subtype of blood cancer;
• spinal puncture - determines the presence of cancer cells;
• molecular diagnostics, with which you can find out about changes in genes at the molecular level;
• computed tomography - reveals metastases and the area of ​​their spread.

The main task of a diagnostic examination is to establish the type of leukemia, the stage of its development, the degree of bone marrow damage and the aggressiveness of the disease. Based on the results of the examination, the specialist will draw up a treatment plan.

Symptoms of blood cancer

Let's look at the very first signs of blood cancer:

• Headaches, dizziness
• Bone pain and joint pain
• Aversion to food and smells
• The temperature rises without certain signs and diseases.
• General weakness and fatigue.
• Frequent infectious diseases.

The first symptoms of blood cancer may also indicate other diseases, which is why the patient rarely sees a doctor at this stage and loses a lot of time. Later, other symptoms may appear, which family and friends pay attention to:

• Pallor
• Yellowness of the skin.
• Drowsiness
• Irritability
• Bleeding that does not stop for a long time.

In some cases, the lymph nodes of the liver and spleen may become greatly enlarged, causing the abdomen to swell in size and create a strong feeling of bloating. At later stages, a rash appears on the skin, and the mucous membranes in the mouth begin to bleed.

If the lymph nodes are affected, you will see a hard seal, but without painful symptoms. In this case, you need to immediately consult a doctor and do an ultrasound of the necessary areas.

NOTE! An enlarged liver spleen may also be due to other infectious diseases, so additional examination is necessary.

Symptoms of oncology depending on stage

The first symptoms of blood cancer can signal the presence of other types of pathologies in the body. Therefore, in rare cases, a person seeks medical help at an early stage. As a result, the patient loses a large amount of precious time.

Over time, at later stages, other symptoms may appear that indicate a developing atypical process in the patient’s body. Often, a person’s altered state may be suspected by his relatives, who send the victim for a medical examination.

First stage

The following are the first signs that indicate the occurrence of a malignant formation in the body at stage 1:

• General weakness in the body, frequent occurrence of dizziness.
• Low-grade fever at around 37.0-37.5 degrees. Characterized by the absence of any changes over a long period of time.
• Painful manifestations in the muscle structure and joints.
• Unreasonable headache.
• Aversion to food and smells.
• Changes in food preferences.
• Frequent trips to the toilet due to impaired urination.
• Frequent development of infectious pathologies.

In some situations, some types of blood cancer provoke an increase in the size of the spleen and liver in the victim. The condition that the initial stage expresses is determined through the following symptoms of the formation - increased bloating, a feeling of heaviness in the hypochondrium and an increase in the size of the abdomen. Also, additional signs of the disease in the patient are the causeless appearance of bleeding from the nasal cavity, the appearance of blood discharge on the mucous tissues and the formation of hematomas caused by even a slight intensity of blows.

Doctors note that, despite the intensity and severity of the manifestation of the listed factors, the patient does not seek medical help. As a result, they do not undergo the necessary diagnostic procedures on time to facilitate the rapid start of treatment measures, and are not in a hurry to get checked to find out about their health. Often, changes in the normal state of the body and health are initially noted by relatives. A person experiences sudden, causeless loss of body weight, and the skin becomes pale. The patient exhibits irritability and aggression that was unusual for him before. There is frequent drowsiness and tearfulness.

Also, a characteristic symptom of blood cancer is expressed by the compaction of nodules under the skin and confirms the presence of oncology. In particular, the nodule forms on the skin in the cervical region, in the armpits and in the groin. Pathological nodules are accompanied by pronounced pain. The disease causes inflammation of the lymph nodes, signaling a smooth transition of the oncological process to a further stage of progression.

Second stage

Stage 2 of hemoblastosis is called “advanced”. The second stage is characterized by a strong manifestation of the symptoms of the above symptoms of the initial stage. Additionally, the patient experiences the following symptoms of blood cancer:

• Dizziness occurs systematically, accompanied by nausea and vomiting.
• A person gets motion sickness regardless of the chosen method of transportation. The symptom appears even in people who have not encountered this problem before.
• Active sweating during night sleep.
• A sharp decrease in body weight without serious reasons.

In most situations, before the above symptoms appear, a significant portion of patients are already familiar with their own diagnosis. After carrying out the prescribed treatment regimen, the oncological process flows into one of the following forms of development:

1. Remission – the form reflects the positive results of the therapy. At the end of this treatment, the production of malignant tissue in the victim’s body stops for a certain period of time.
2. Terminal - doctors warn of severe destruction and disruption of normal functioning, which is expressed by the hematopoietic system. This type of pathology does not stop the development of oncology. The only task and opportunity of the attending physician in treating the patient is to maintain the normal state of the person’s health by carrying out therapeutic procedures that affect the degree of manifestation of symptoms.

Third stage

If it was not possible to diagnose the disease up to grade 3, atypicality is identified based on the following symptoms:

• The nail plate and the skin of the lips turn blue.
• Temperature readings increase to 38 degrees and above.
• Painful manifestations occur in the cardiac region.
• Tachycardia occurs, and the volume of myocardial contraction frequency is excessively increased.
• The patient suffers from respiratory distress.
• Painful sensations of a jolting nature are observed in the abdominal region.
• Uncontrolled bleeding occurs.
• Convulsive attacks in muscle structures are noted.
• The level of anxiety increases.
• A faint state appears. In some situations, stage 3 manifests itself in such a way that the body does not have even a minimal reaction to the influence of external irritating factors.

Determining these signs of oncological pathology in a patient requires emergency hospitalization. The danger consists of a threat to the normal health and life of the victim.

Fourth stage

Chronic leukemia in the early stages of progression passes without pronounced symptoms. In most cases, the acute form of cancer is determined after passing the necessary blood tests. If the disease actively progresses, secondary tumor neoplasms form in the human body, the size of the liver and spleen changes, the size of the lymph nodes increases, and an excess volume of blastomas is produced in the blood.

Stages of leukemia

This stage is called “irreversible”. The doctor manages to increase the life expectancy of a victim with a chronic type of blood cancer only in 5% of cases. The patient's body is subjected to a chaotic and uncontrolled proliferation of low-quality cells, affecting various organs and structures of the body. Stage 4 blood cancer is accompanied by the following series of symptoms:

• Multiple low-grade cancers that invade the brain, lungs and liver. At the same time, the pathogenic neoplasm actively progresses and expands through nearby structures.
• Formation of cancer of the bone structure.
• Formation of fatal pancreatic cancer.

Diagnosis of blood cancer

How to recognize blood cancer in the early stages? Usually this disease is detected already on the first general blood test. Later, a brain puncture is performed - a rather painful operation - using a thick needle to pierce the pelvic bone and take a sample of bone marrow.

Later, these tests are sent to the laboratory, where they look at the cells under a microscope and then report the result. In addition, you can do an analysis for tumor markers. In general, doctors conduct as many examinations as possible, even after identifying the tumor itself.

But why? - the fact is that leukemia has many varieties and each disease has its own character and is more sensitive to certain types of treatment - that is why you need to know what exactly the patient is suffering from in order for the doctor to understand how to properly treat blood cancer.

Preparing for blood collection

To obtain reliable test results, patients should adhere to certain recommendations before taking blood:

• 2 weeks before the test, stop taking systemic medications;
• 2-3 days before the analysis, exclude fatty and fried foods and alcoholic beverages from the diet;
• stop smoking 2 hours before blood sampling;
• 30 minutes before the procedure, bring your emotional state back to normal, avoid mental and physical stress;
• In order to avoid obtaining distorted results, do not conduct analysis immediately after performing other types of examination (laboratory or instrumental).

You can eat food before a general blood test, but it is better not to eat eight hours before the test. To obtain a correct, undistorted result of a biochemical blood test, fasting is recommended before the test (8-12 hours). It is allowed to drink liquid in the form of purified still water.

Stages of blood cancer

Typically, staging allows the doctor to determine the size of the tumor, the extent of its damage, as well as the presence of metastasis and the effect on distant tissues and organs.

Stage 1

First, as a result of a failure of the immune system itself, mutant cells appear in the body, which have a different appearance and structure and are constantly dividing. At this stage, cancer is quite easily and quickly treated.

Stage 2

The cells themselves begin to flock together and form tumor clots. At the same time, the treatment is even more effective. Metastasis has not yet begun.

Stage 3

There are so many cancer cells that they first affect the lymphatic tissues and then spread through the blood to all organs. Metastases are distributed throughout the body.

Stage 4

Metastases began to deeply affect other organs. The effectiveness of chemotherapy decreases significantly due to the fact that other tumors begin to react differently to the same chemical reagent. Pathology in women can spread to the genitals, uterus and mammary glands.

Is it possible to get infected

Many patients ask doctors the same question: is cancer contagious? To this, doctors give a definite answer that until today there has not been a single case of blood cancer being transmitted from one person to another. This disease cannot be transmitted from sick to healthy. This is not a viral or infectious disease, and even if cancer cells enter the bloodstream from another person, infection will not occur.

Blood oncology, like any other type of cancer, is a specific reaction of the body to certain factors. For some reason, a malfunction occurs in the body and one type of cell begins to grow uncontrollably, displacing others. This is how a tumor forms. Diagnosis and treatment of cancer is complicated by the fact that the body does not perceive these growing cells as a threat. These are native human cells and the immune system does not react to them.

Patients are also interested in whether cancer in the blood is inherited? Doctors today are confident that having a genetic predisposition to develop blood cancer, a person has a greater chance than those people in whose family no one has had this disease. However, there are often cases when a person can live to a ripe old age without getting cancer when his close relatives were sick.

How is blood cancer treated?

Chemotherapy is usually used to combat this disease. Using a needle, chemical reagents are injected into the blood and are aimed directly at cancer cells. It is clear that other cells also suffer, resulting in: hair loss, heartburn, nausea, vomiting, loose stools, decreased immunity and anemia.

The problem with this therapy is that, of course, the reagents themselves are aimed at destroying only cancer cells, but they are very similar to our own. And later they can mutate and change their properties, which is why any reagent simply stops working. As a result, more toxic substances are used, which already have a detrimental effect on the body itself.

Malignant blood disease is a very nasty disease, and compared to other tumors, it is very fast, so if it is not diagnosed and treated in time, the patient dies within 5 months.

There is another rather dangerous treatment method when bone marrow is transplanted. Before this, chemotherapy is used to completely destroy the patient’s bone marrow in order to completely destroy the cancer cells.

NOTE! Dear readers, remember that no healers or healers can help you cure this disease, and since it develops very quickly, you definitely need to consult a doctor in time. In this case, you can use: vitamins, herbal decoctions of chamomile, yarrow, sea buckthorn oil - they have anti-inflammatory properties and will help stop the bleeding if something happens. Do not use folk remedies such as: tinctures of fly agaric, hemlock, celandine and other remedies with sending substances. You must understand that in this case the patient’s body has a very weakened effect, and this can simply finish it off.

To summarize

Because the actual causes of blood cancer are still unknown, scientists are trying to determine when and why the body begins to produce abnormal cells and how these cells begin to enter the body's circulatory system. Once these questions are answered, the information is used to improve prevention and treatment options.

Thanks to new and better treatments, survival rates for blood cancer have already improved significantly over the past few decades. In addition, doctors, nurses and researchers continue to search for the causes of leukemia, lymphoma and myeloma to develop even more effective treatments and tailor them to reduce toxic side effects.

Social workers, psychologists, psychiatrists and other health professionals also work to help people and their families cope with cancer and its treatment and maintain a good quality of life.

Blood cancer in children

In fact, this disease is quite common in young patients from 1 to 5 years old. This is mainly due to the radiation that mothers receive during pregnancy, as well as due to a genetic disorder within the child.

In this case, the disease proceeds in the same way as in adults, with all the accompanying symptoms. The difference is that children are much more susceptible to recovery - this is due to the fact that the regeneration of cells and tissues in children is at a much higher level than in adults.

Prognosis for blood cancer

• The number of cases is 4-10 per 100,000 people.
• Men get sick one and a half times more often. In women, the disease is observed less frequently.
• Chronic leukemia affects more people between 40 and 50 years of age.
• Acute leukemia most often affects young people aged 10 to 18 years.
• Childhood leukemia 3-4 cases per 100,000 people.
• Acute lymphoblastic leukemia is cured in the early stages - 85-95%. At later stages 60-65%.
• With proper therapy, even against the background of acute leukemia, you can achieve results up to 6-7 years of life.

How long do people with leukemia live? With proper therapy and early detection of the disease, you can live more than 5-7 years. In general, doctors give ambiguous prognoses for acute and chronic forms of blood cancer.

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Reasons for the development of the disease

Currently, there is no clear answer to the question of what causes skin cancer. Like many other oncological diseases, skin tumors are considered a multi-etiological pathology. There are several predisposing factors, the presence of which increases the risk of developing a tumor focus. These include:

• Excessive exposure to ultraviolet rays on the skin. A similar situation occurs with prolonged and frequent exposure to sunlight, visiting a solarium, or working outside. Residents of the southern regions are at risk of developing skin cancer.
• Having light skin. Lack of melanin production increases the likelihood of skin tumors.
• Skin burn. A high degree of burn is accompanied by scarring of the skin. This process contributes to the emergence of latent carcinogenesis.
• Irradiation. Exposure to radioactive, ionizing rays has a detrimental effect on the skin. The risk of radiation dermatitis increases.
• Presence of skin contact with toxic substances. This group of carcinogens includes arsenic, aluminum, titanium, nickel and other heavy metals.
• Immunodeficiency. Conditions in which the body's protective functions decrease predispose to the formation of a tumor focus.
• Age. Most often, skin tumors affect people over 50 years of age.
• Concomitant systemic diseases. Doctors identify a group of pathologies in which the risk of developing skin cancer increases significantly. These include systemic lupus erythematosus, leukemia, and chronic skin diseases.
• Heredity. The presence of a skin tumor in previous generations of relatives is not a major risk factor. However, family history in combination with other predisposing conditions increases the possibility of developing skin cancer.
• Tattooing. In this case, there are two risk factors. This is a violation of the integrity of the skin and the introduction of paint with carcinogenic substances. Cheap tattoo ink may contain impurities of aluminum, titanium, and arsenic.
• A large number of nevi. Doctors urge you to monitor the condition of moles and contact a specialist if there is the slightest change. Traumatization of nevi increases the possibility of developing skin cancer.
• Excessive alcohol consumption, smoking. Chronic intoxication has a detrimental effect on the body as a whole. Against this background, the risk of tumor formation increases several times.
• Eating foods high in nitrates.

Oncologists identify several precancerous conditions, the presence of which significantly increases the risk of developing skin cancer. These include:

• Xeroderma pigmentosum.
• Bowen's disease.
• Paget's disease.
• Hyperkeratosis.
• Cutaneous horn.
• Late stage radiation sickness.
• Dermatitis and dermatoses.

Expert opinion

Author:

Alexey Andreevich Moiseev

Oncologist, chemotherapist, Ph.D.

Every year, 9,000 cases of newly diagnosed melanoma are registered in Russia. This aggressive malignant tumor is responsible for the death of 40% of patients. Such statistics indicate that the country's population is not sufficiently aware of the symptoms of melanoma. As a result, a visit to a doctor occurs in the later stages, when treatment is considered ineffective.

Doctors at the Yusupov Hospital determine the location of melanoma and prescribe treatment appropriate to the stage of tumor development. An individual approach to the problem of each patient allows us to reduce the number of deaths. A tumor detected in time is characterized by a favorable prognosis for recovery. The later melanoma is detected, the longer the treatment process will be. Its success depends on many factors. The main treatments for melanoma are surgery, radiation and chemotherapy. Depending on the condition, symptomatic therapy is carried out.

You can diagnose the presence of skin cancer yourself at home. Doctors recommend regularly examining the skin, especially nevi, for the appearance of pathological formations.