While you may not realize it yet your body is always showing you things about yourself you aren’t aware of.
Listening to your body will be able to provide you with some very helpful information.
When we pay attention to our bodies we can be given hints for spotting things like cancer and other diseases we would often overlook.
There are many indirect signs we can look for when considering an illness such as cancer. Below I will list the 21 most common symptoms.
Signs You Should Always Be Looking For
1. Shortness of Breath
Many lung cancer patients have mentioned noticing this as one of
their very first signs. However, initially, it was not found to be
connected with cancer.
2. Infections and Fevers
This can be a sign of leukemia. For those of you who are not familiar
with leukemia, it is a cancer of the blood cells that begins in the
bone marrow. It forces the marrow itself to produce strange white blood
cells that work against your bodies ability to fight infection.
3. Upset Stomach
Frequent stomach cramps and stomach issues of all sorts can be one of
the early signs of colorectal cancer. Colorectal cancer is colon cancer
and rectum cancer. It is the leading type of cancer in males and the
fourth in females.
4. Lower Back Pain
This is often a sign of liver cancer. Of course, sadly this can also
be a sign of breast cancer as well. That is because breast tumors can
press backward into the chest and spread pain to the spine or ribs. The
pain will often stay closer to the right side.
5. Issues Swallowing
This is commonly associated with throat cancer but can also indicate lung cancer as well.
6. Fatigue
This should be considered one of the most common cancer symptoms
there are. It should only be looked at in combination with other
symptoms in order to determine what kind of cancer it could be.
7. Loss of Appetite
This can be a sign of ovarian cancer and should not be ignored. If
you have not eaten very much and still seem to have no appetite it is
best to see a doctor as soon as possible. This can be a dead giveaway
when it comes to ovarian cancer.
8. Anorexia
This can be a clear indicator for pancreatic cancer. This can also be linked sometimes with smoking.
9. Rectal Bleeding (Blood in stool)
Of course seeing blood in the toilet should be a clear sign you need
to see a doctor whether it is cancer-related or not. Blood in the stool
is a clear sign of colorectal cancer. It is something that should be
dealt with immediately.
10. Abdominal Pain
This can be linked with bloating as a sign for ovarian cancer. Don’t
go crossing cancer off if you’re not bloated as it can still be a sign
of leukemia as well. When the cramps in your pelvis are prominent there
could be something serious going on.
11. Chronic Cough
Lung tumors show this as a symptom. It can mimic a bad cough or even bronchitis.
12. Painful Heavy Periods (or Bleeding Between Periods)
This is a common sign for something known as endometrial (uterine
cancer.) If this issue does not go away please consider getting a
transvaginal ultrasound done. It could help you uncover something in the
early stages.
13. Chest Pain
Some patients with leukemia and lung tumors have mentioned a chest pain that extended to the shoulder and down their arm.
14. Changes In Fingernails
If you begin noticing a brown or black dot underneath your fingernail
it can be an indicator for skin cancer. White or overly pale nails is a
sign for liver cancer and if you happen to have enlarged fingers with
nails that curve down over the tips can be a sign for lung cancer. Pay
attention to your fingernails.
15. Bleeding Sore Lump On Your Skin
These can be caused by several different types of skin cancer such as
melanoma, basal cell carcinoma, and squamous cell carcinoma. Please be
aware of any strange growths you may notice on your body. If you have a
bleeding sore or even one that is crusty and won’t heal please see a
doctor right away.
16. Swollen Facial Features
Patients with lung cancer have mentioned noticing puffiness, swelling
and in some cases redness of the face. This is because some small cell
tumors in the lung can block blood vessels in the chest. This prevents
blood from flowing to the head freely.
17. Swollen Breasts
This indicates inflammatory breast cancer. Changes like this that are
unexplained should be something we should alert our doctors of
immediately. If a nipple appears flattened, sideways, or inverted please
see a doctor.
18. Unexplainable weight loss
weight loss can be a sign of cancer that has spread to the liver as
well as colon and digestive cancers. If cancer spreads to your liver it
affects your appetite and also messes with your bodies ability to get
rid of waste properly. This is a very serious issue.
19. Bloating
Patients with ovarian cancer have reported on many occasions that
they were dealing with an unexplained bloating that came on quite
suddenly and did not cease for a long period of time.
20. Bruising Excessively
This is something that suggests an abnormality with the platelets and red blood cells. It can be a sign of leukemia.
21. Lumps (Neck, Groin, or Underarm)
Changes in the lymphatic system can lead to cancer in many ways. If you notice swollen lymph nodes be sure to get them checked out as soon as you can. It doesn’t hurt to be cautious.
Being aware of these signs will help prepare us in the long run. Finding these things as soon as possible helps to get them under control before the true issue arises. If you want to reduce your cancer risks there are things you can do that will help with that.
Making sure you get enough vitamin D is a good place to start. Vitamin D is a well-known cancer preventive.
Exercise daily, it will keep your body in good health and drive your insulin levels down. Make sure you reduce your exposure to things like environmental toxins like pesticides and even household chemical cleaners.
We should do our best to maintain a healthy lifestyle and aid our body in any way we can. We all deserve to live full cancer free lives.
Please take the time to watch the video below for more information on how to prevent cancer.