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        The earlier cancer is detected, the better are the chances of it being treated successfully. The best way to do this is by safeguarding your own health and knowing the warning signs and symptoms of cancer and having regular check-up with your physician, says Dr V Srinivasan MD (Consultant Oncologist), Dr Kamakshi Memorial Hospital, Pallikaranai, in suburban Chennai. It is essential that you visit your doctor on a regular basis. It would be disastrous if you wait for cancer symptoms to crop up.

        The following have been summarised as signs of cancer, the doctor listed out:

Change in bowel or bladder habit

 A sore that does not heal

Unusual bleeding or discharge

Thickening or lump in the breast

Indigestion or difficulty in swallowing

Obvious change in a wart or mole

Nagging cough or hoarseness.

        Other notable signs may include thickening or lump in any part of the body and unexplained weight loss.

        These symptoms, singly or collectively, are not always symptoms of cancer. They may also be caused by several other conditions - which include minor illnesses. While it is important for you to see a doctor in the presence of certain symptoms, because it is only a doctor that can make a diagnosis, it would be wrong for one to wait to feel pain and, thereafter, seek medical advice, Dr Srinivasan says. Growing older and being subject to symptoms also isn't as simple an equation as it would appear on the surface. Because of this myth, many illnesses, including cancer, go undiagnosed and untreated. Never disregard your symptoms because you think they are not important or because they may be normal for your age. Speak to your doctor at the earliest.

        TESTS:

        Most cancers in their early stages - which are also the most treatable - do, not cause any symptoms or pain. All the more reason for you to undergo regular tests to check for cancer before it quietly sneaks in and explodes. 'Your doctor will consider your age, medical history, general health, family history and lifestyle, before conducting a screening test. This is the best time for you to ask questions, and seek clarification'. Tests usually recommended are:

        MAMMOGRAM

        A mammogram is a special x-ray of the breast. It can detect cancers that are too small for a woman or the doctor to feel.

        PAP TEST:

        The risk of cancer of cervix - (the lower, narrow part of the uterus or womb) - increases with age. In the procedure, the doctor uses a wooden scraper, or small brush, to collect a sample of cells from the cervix and upper vagina.

        The cells are sent to a laboratory to test for abnormalities.

        FAECAL OCCULT BLOOD TEST:

        In this test, stool samples are applied to special cards, which are examined in a laboratory for occult (hidden) blood. Colorectal cancer is common in both men and women, and is a leading cause of death after the age of 50. Another key test that is often ordered is the prostate specific antigen (PSA).

        SKIN EXAM:

        Skin cancer is the most common form of cancer. A routine examination of the skin helps the process of detecting skin cancer early.

        BIOPSY:

        You should bear in mind that the positive result on any of these tests does not necessarily mean that you have cancer. You need to undergo other tests - in the absence or presence of any possibility or questions. One accurate examination is biopsy. Biopsy is the only sure way to know whether the culprit is cancer. For a biopsy a sample of tissue is removed from the abnormal area and examined under a microscope to detect cancer cells.