As like most diseases, diagnosing cancer in its early stages offers one a more optimal treatment outcome. Regular cancer screening is encouraged as most cancers do not present any sign or symptom in its early stages.
Cancer be diagnosed through various tests, including a thorough history and physical examination as well as diagnostic testing. These tests are essential as it helps to detect the disease accurately.
Here are some common cancer screening tests:
Laboratory tests such as urine and blood tests, are one of the most important tools that can help doctors identify abnormalities caused by cancer.
A common blood test called complete blood count (CBC) test, is often used to examine the red and white blood cell count. An usually high number of white blood cells may point to an underlying medical condition such as leukemia and calls for further evaluation.
A biopsy is a procedure that involves obtaining a sample of tissue or cells for analysis to diagnose a medical condition. It is a definitive way to diagnosis most cancers and is often a follow up procedure after imaging tests detect suspicious lumps and tumors. There are several types of biopsies performed to test if abnormalities in your body are caused by cancer or by other conditions.
Imaging tests allow doctors to examine bones and organs to detect cancer. Examples of tests include X-ray, computerized tomography (CT) scan, bone scan, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), positron emission tomography (PET) scan, ultrasound and more.
These tests enable doctors to identify mass or lump (tumor) in the body to determine the location of tumor, which can later be used to support the treatment plan by allowing radiation therapy beams to be focused on the exact location of tumor.
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