Testicular Cancer

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Testicular cancer occurs when an abnormal overgrowth of cells forms in one or both testicles. This is the most common cancer in American men ages 15 to 35. Approximately 7,500 new cases are diagnosed each year. It's almost always curable if found early.

Testicular cancer is classified as either:

1. Seminoma - accounts for approximately 50 percent of the cases. It's highly sensitive to radiation therapy and usually slow-growing.

2. Nonseminoma - a group of cancers more likely to spread to the lymph nodes.

Men who have a testicle that never descended are at greater risk, even if they've had surgery to correct it. Other risk factors: previous testicular cancer; family history of the disease; HIV and AIDS; and certain occupations (miners, oil and gas workers, leather workers, food and beverage processors, janitors and utility workers). It is more common among white men.

Common symptoms include a pealike lump, swelling of either testicle, a feeling of heaviness in the scrotum, dull ache in the groin or abdomen, sudden collection of fluid in the scrotum, pain or discomfort, and enlargement or tenderness of the breasts.

Most testicular cancers are highly treatable, even in later stages. There are four standard treatment options, which may be combined with one another depending on the stage of the cancer and the patient's health:

1. Radical inguinal orchiectomy - surgical removal of one or both testicles, and possibly lymph nodes, through a cut in the groin.

2. Radiation therapy

3. Chemotherapy

4. Bone marrow transplant - a newer type of treatment for testicular cancer in which a patient's bone marrow is removed, treated and then reinjected.

Most of the known risk factors are not preventable, so medical experts say it's virtually impossible to prevent testicular cancer. However, they emphasize performing a monthly testicular self exam after showering as the best way to detect problems early.