One of the most threatening diseases in today’s life is blood cancer, so knowing blood cancer symptoms or early signs is very important. They help a patient to heal from blood cancer. The successful course of therapy is greatly increased by the early discovery of blood cancer signs. Leukaemia, lymphoma, and multiple myeloma are the three main forms of blood cancer, and their symptoms change depending on the stage of the illness. To help identify early warning signs and guarantee prompt medical intervention, in this article, we will go through blood cancer symptoms in a stage-wise, in-depth manner.
What is Blood Cancer?
Blood cancer is a disease that disrupts the production and function of blood cells. Most frequently, the origin is the bone marrow; this is where blood cells are made. Blood cancer is characterized mainly by the uncontrolled proliferation of abnormal cells, due to their large number, displacing normal blood cells, thereby the functionality of the latter is compromised. This Infection need a some ability in the body, like carrying oxygen and stopping bleeding, which is severely impaired. Blood cancer follows leukemia, lymphoma, and multiple myeloma.
Leukemia infections are present in the blood or bone marrow, lymphoma infection shows the lymphatic system and multiple myeloma infections indicate plasma cells. A person survives with blood cancer feels some symptoms in their body, such as tiredness, infection in body, loss of weight, and continuous fever and bleeding. If diagnosed at an early stage and treated properly, the patient can have an overall good survival as well as good quality of life.
Early Blood Cancer Symptoms
Focus on some early blood cancer symptoms that help to heal blood cancer patients.
- Fatigue & Weakness: When a person has a disease like blood cancer, they feel extremely tired, weakness in their body, or breathlessness even after resting people call this disease anemia.
- Frequent Infections: You are getting continuously sick or having infections, and your body heal longer because your immune system is weak.
- Unexplained Weight Loss: You feel your body weight continuously losing without doing any dieting or exercising.
- Night sweats: It is a condition where the patients sweat so excessively at night that their clothes and bedding get damp.
- Easy Bleeding/Bruising: This is caused by the low level of platelets which may be shown as frequent nosebleeds, bleeding gums, or very heavy menstrual periods.
- Swollen Lymph Nodes: These are the painless bumps usually found on the neck, armpits or groin areas, which are caused by enlarged lymph nodes.
- Bone or Joint Pain: Sustained bone or joint pain such as the ribs or back area.
- Chills and Fever: An unexplained fever that keeps on coming.
- Paleness: When the skin shows a pale or even yellowish color, it means red blood cell count is low.
Stage-Wise Blood Cancer Symptoms
As we know, blood cancer affect productions and function of blood cells in our body. Now, understand stage-wise blood cancer symptoms can help with early detection and timely treatment.
Early Stage Blood Cancer Symptoms
In this first stage, patient feel the blood cancer symptoms are mild, and ignore or mistaken for common illnesses.
- Constant tiredness and lack of energy
- Getting infections repeatedly
- Sometimes having a low fever or feeling cold
- Having pale skin because of anemia
- Getting bruises easily or slight bleeding
Intermediate Stage Blood Cancer Symptoms
As the disease advances, the symptoms of blood cancer becomes more noticeable and the quality of a patient’s life is compromised.
- More tiredness than usual and difficulty in breathing
- Feel continuous very serious infections
- You can feel a swollen on lymph nodes, liver, or spleen
- Bones or joints are weak so you feel a pain in your bones and joints
- Excessive sweating especially at night
- Decreased appetite
- Stomach pain or feeling of fullness bleeding
Advanced Stage Blood Cancer Symptoms
In later phases, blood cancer extensively damages the body and the functions of different organs.
- Profound anemia and exhausting weakness
- Dangerous or even fatal infections
- Losing too much blood or getting bruises easily
- Very intense bone pain or broken bones
- Brain-related signs (very bad headache, not being able to think clearly, problems with seeing)
- Kidney failure
- High calcium levels causing nausea and confusion
- Rapid weight loss and physical decline
Risk Factors of Blood Cancer
Risk factors are those elements that make it more likely for a person to develop blood cancer but they generally will not cause the disease directly.
Age
- With increasing age, your risk also goes up.
- There are certain blood cancers which are more frequently seen in children.
- Multiple myeloma is a common disease that present to the adult people.
Family History & Genetics
- Your risk will be higher if a close family member had blood cancer.
- Some genetic disorders that are acquired from your parents might make you more vulnerable.
Exposure to Radiation
- Radiation in large quantities can harm your DNA.
- When you have a Nuclear exposure or radiation therapy, that increases the risk of blood cancer.
A Harmful Chemicals
- One of the main causes is the exposure to benzene that strongly associated with leukaemia.
- Smoking tobacco, petrol, and industrial solvents all contain this chemical.
- Using pesticides and other industrial chemicals increases the risk of blood cancer.
Weak Immune System
- People with HIV/AIDS have the risk of developing blood cancer.
- Those who have undergone an organ transplant and are on immune suppressant drugs are at higher risk.
- Chronic immune disorders also prevent the body from fighting cancer.
Previous Cancer Treatment
- Some treatments like chemotherapy and radiation which are generally used for other cancers.
- These therapies, however, can sometimes harm the healthy DNA.
- One of the risks associated with these treatments is the development of blood cancer as a second cancer.
Viral Infections
- Some viruses may cause blood cancer EBV and HTLV-1.
- One of the virus-causes of cancer is their ability to induce changes in the infected cell.
Lifestyle & Environmental Factors
- Smoking is a major factor in leukemia.
- The risk of getting a disease caused by exposure to pollution.
Conclusion
As we all know Blood cancer is the most life threatening disease, but with the help of this article, we understand the symptoms of blood cancer that help in early detection, greatly improving treatment outcomes and quality of life. We covered first stage, intermediate, and advanced symptoms and also covered the risk factors that make you aware and help in blood cancer treatment. Go through this informative guide for a better understanding of blood cancer symptoms.