Cancer Disease Symptoms

Kidneys are very important and complex organs in our bodies. Their primary function is to keep the bodily fluids, which include the blood and the urine, in equilibrium by constantly screening, cleansing and filtering these fluids inside our bodies. These screening, cleansing and filtering actions are very important in keeping our bodies healthy and if something should happen to these kidneys, our bodies can be seriously affected. Like all other organs in our bodies, our kidneys can develop kidney cancer.
The most common type of kidney cancer in adults is known as renal cell carcinoma. Renal cell carcinoma begins in the small cells that line the tubes within our kidneys. This type of cancer is generally a single mass but can also have many tumors. The most common form of kidney cancer in children is known as Wilms' tumor. The other type of kidney cancer is the transitional cell carcinoma. This form of cancer starts in the tubes that connect the kidneys to the bladder. In the USA alone, around 51,000 people are diagnosed with kidney cancer each year and this number is increasing.
There are several risk factors when dealing with kidney cancer. Men are more likely to get renal cell carcinoma than women. As you get older the risk of getting kidney cancer increases, especially those above 60 years old. Smoking also increases the chance that you will develop cancer in your kidney. Your weight also plays a major role - those who are above average weight have more chances of developing kidney cancer as well. Having high blood pressure also increases the risk of getting renal cell carcinoma, but the reason why this is so is still unknown. Heredity also plays a role in this as well.
Kidney cancer is diagnosed through various methods. One method is through an ultrasound where high-frequency sound waves are used to generate images of internal organs. CT and MRI scans are also used to look for kidney cancer. CT scans use computers to generate better images of internal organs than x-rays scan and MRI scans use magnetic fields and radio waves to generate pictures of our bodies.
Kidney cancer rarely causes obvious symptoms in the early stages. In the later stages, the symptoms for kidney cancer includes blood in urine, back pain below the ribs, weight loss, fatigue and fever. If you have any of these symptoms, it is important that you visit your doctor early. Your doctor will be able to assess whether you need to undergo certain scans to see if you do in fact have kidney cancer.
Lester Lee is the webmaster of http://www.Cancer-Tumor.info, an informative website that provides the latest advice, info and updates on Kidney Cancer Visit our site today for more helpful info on Kidney Cancer and other similar topics.
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