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Testicular
cancer is the most common malignancy in young men between
the ages of 20 and 34. There are about 7500 new
cases yearly, with approximately 350 deaths per year in
the US. |
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Testicular
cancer is more common in white men than black or Asian. |
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Although it
accounts for only about 1 percent of all cancers in men,
it is the number one cancer killer among men in their 20's
and 30's. |
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Most
testicular cancers are self-discovered by patients as a
painless or uncomfortable lump in the testicle. About 1-3%
of testicular neoplasms are bilateral. |
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Pure seminomas constitute
roughly 40% of all testicular cancer cases. Forty percent
of the testicular cancers have mixture of histology. |
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The
cancer risk for boys with a history of undescended
testicles is about 10-40 times higher than normal
individuals. The risk of developing the disease was
estimated at 1 out of 20 for a testis retained in the
abdomen and 1 out of 80 if it was within the inguinal
canal. The risk remains elevated after surgical
correction. Both testis are at higher risk, not just
the undescended one. |
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If found early,
testicular cancer is almost always curable. |
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Early
stage testicular cancer can be treated with surgery and
radiation therapy. Late stage testicular cancer can
be treated with the combination of surgery, radiation
therapy and/or chemotherapy. |
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The prognosis
for men with testicular cancer is very good, even with
late stage disease. The chances of recovery are excellent
with surgery and radiotherapy for early stage disease.
Combined modality is used for treatment of late stage
disease with good results. |
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More
than 90% of testicular cancer patients are cured by their
initial treatment, and many of those who have recurrent
disease can also be cured with chemotherapy or radiation. |
