The testicles are two small, egg-shaped glands positioned close to the penis, with the scrotum—a loose skin —surrounding them. Testicles contain germ cells and other cells that make sperm and secrete testosterone. The origin of most testicular cancers is the sperm-producing germ cells, hence are referred to as germ cell tumors. The major categories of testicular cancers are germ cell tumors, stromal tumors, and carcinoma in situ of the testicle.
Statistics
Testicular cancer is rampant in young men aged between 30 and 39, with 3,100 new cases in the 30 to 39 age group and 3,000 new cases in the 20 to 29 age group. The average age of diagnosis is 33. The disease can, however, occur at any age. 9,610 men were diagnosed this year with testicular cancer. 1 out of 250 men and boys will be diagnosed with the disease during their lifetime.
Risk Factors And Symptoms
Risk factors include:
- Age (20-45)
- Cryptorchidism (undescended testicle)
- Family history
- Personal history of prior cancer
- Gender (male)
- Race (black people)
- People infected with HIV
- Abnormal testicular development
- Klinefelter's syndrome
An engorged testicle or a small lump or area of hardness are usually the first signs of testicular cancer. Other symptoms include a painless lump or swelling on either testicle; pain, discomfort, or numbness in a testicle or the scrotum, consistent with or without any swelling, the difference in the feeling of heaviness in the scrotum, mild ache in the lower abdomen or groin, abrupt fluid buildup in the scrotum, breast tenderness, lower back pain, shortness of breath, chest pain, and bloody sputum or phlegm, and hernia.
Treatment
Surgery (orchiectomy, retroperitoneal lymph node dissection (RPLND), nerve-sparing techniques, reconstructive surgery), chemotherapy, (bleomycin, etoposide, cisplatin, carboplatin, gemcitabine, ifosfamide, oxaliplatin, paclitaxel, and vinblastine), and radiation therapy are the currently available treatment options. Stem cell transplantation is also employed for testicular cancers that have returned after successful treatment.
