Hyderabad: National Cancer Awareness Day is observed on November 7th every year in India to create awareness among people about this deadly disease. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), cancer is the second leading cause of death. The situation of people suffering from cancer and dying due to it is so worse that, in 2018, 1.5 million people died of cancer in India.
The former Union Minister of Health and Family Welfare of India, Dr Harsh Vardhan, announced the National Cancer Awareness Day on September 2014. He also started a state-level movement for cancer control and encouraged municipal clinics to conduct free-of-charge testing. During this period, booklets were also distributed about the early signs of cancer and how to treat it.
Some types of cancer can be cured if the symptoms are caught in the early stages. Different symptoms are seen depending on the organ affected by different cancers. But here are some common symptoms that you should seek medical advice immediately if you experience any of the following symptoms:
- Pain in any part of your body that is persistent and for no apparent reason.
- Sudden weight loss for no apparent reason.
- Feeling tired all the time.
- Non-low or frequent fever.
- Changes in the colour or texture of the skin.
- A lump in any part of the body, with or without pain.
- Abnormal discharge or bleeding from any part of the body.
- Skin or facial lesions that have not healed.
If you or a person close to you experiences these symptoms, seek medical advice without wasting time to avoid any other problems. These symptoms do not always mean cancer. Many of these symptoms can be caused by other diseases.
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If you have a family history of cancer, or if you have been using tobacco products (in any form) for a long time, you may be at a higher risk of developing cancer than other people. Talk to your doctor about which screening tests are appropriate for you so that you can detect cancer before it grows, it can be in the early stages. Tobacco is considered to be one of the leading causes of cancer. It increases the risk of several cancers including lung, mouth and uterine cancer. If you or your close ones are addicted to smoking, you have the option of seeking the advice of a counsellor who will help you quit the habit.
For breast cancer, women over the age of 40 are advised to have a mammography every year or every alternate year depending on their cancer risk. Similarly, for cervical cancer, pap smears can help detect the disease before it reaches an advanced stage. Not all types of cancer have screening tests. Check your health annually so that any abnormalities can be detected early. A dentist can detect any signs of oral cancer in your mouth and lips.
Some cancers can be prevented many times with vaccination. For example, cervical cancer can be prevented in most cases by vaccination at age 13, or before there is any chance of exposure to the sexually transmitted HPV virus. There is no specific vaccine for cancer of the liver, but hepatitis virus vaccination reduces the risk of liver cancer.
Obesity is also a major cause of cancer, which can be prevented with a healthy lifestyle. Obesity is associated with many diseases and cancer is one of them. Maintaining a healthy weight, and being physically active can reduce the risk of many types of cancer and increase your chances of survival if cancer is ever diagnosed. Even moderate exercise, such as 30 minutes of aerobic exercise, five times a week can significantly reduce the risk of various diseases. Foods high in refined carbohydrates, sugar, processed foods and red meat increase your risk of cancer. Such foods cause chronic inflammation in the digestive system, which leads to type 2 diabetes, heart disease and many other diseases.
Include green vegetables like eggplant, fresh fruits and vegetables with olive oil, healthy fats or fat-free meat like salmon, and nuts like almonds and walnuts. Since excessive consumption of alcohol and red meat increases the risk of cancer, it is important to not include them in the daily diet. You can also avoid many deadly diseases by avoiding deep-fried foods.
