What blood test indicator indicates cancer? Mandatory examination: what tests will help detect cancer in time. Who is indicated for preventive tests?

What specific blood test should a person take for early detection of oncology? This question worries many people who are worried about their own health. In general, timely diagnosis allows treatment of malignant tumors to begin without delay. The initial stages of cancer have long been no longer considered a death sentence.

To a large extent, the high mortality rate from this type of pathology is due, first of all, to late seeking help.

About cancer

At the first and second stages, the patient usually has a very high chance of recovery. Even with the third, today a person is often put on his feet. However, the 4th is already very serious. Here the patient is prescribed only symptomatic therapy, since the metastases that have spread throughout the body begin to actively destroy it.

Actually, for this reason, preventive examinations are in many ways a guarantee of cure, as they help detect oncology in the first stages of development.

Doctors consider anyone at risk to have:

• there were cases of cancer in the family;
• have bad habits (smoking, alcoholism);
• tissues and organs have been exposed to radiation or toxic effects in the past;
• immunodeficiency was detected.

For other representatives of the fairer sex, the risk increases after 55 years.

Signs of the onset of oncology are, depending on its type, the following symptoms:

• wounds that do not heal for a long time;
• discomfort when swallowing;
• bloody and other uncharacteristic discharge in urine or feces;
• moles that have begun to grow rapidly and have changed color;
• sudden and significant weight loss;
• any swelling, dense lumps under the skin;
• visible deformations of the genitals, face, breast, neck;
• incurable dry cough;
• noticeable shortness of breath and hoarseness.

In particular, brain damage is often indicated by the appearance of some kind of smell (burning or citrus fruits), which the patient cannot get rid of for weeks.

In principle, even the simplest general blood test can indicate the presence of cancer. It is carried out quickly and is very inexpensive. However, only a doctor should interpret its results.

By the way, it is recommended to take it regularly - once a year. If there are serious suspicions, the doctor will recommend undergoing a number of other specialized examinations.

What signs in tests indicate cancer?

The problem is indicated, first of all, by the presence of a relatively small number of platelets in the patient’s blood and a noticeable increase in the number of leukocytes. In this case, the ESR will be more than 30. However, it is possible to confirm the assumption only on the condition that the described condition remains unchanged for several months.

An increase in alkaline phosphatase also indicates oncology. A drop in cholesterol allows one to suspect pathology specifically in the liver.

At the same time, a blood test is not able to accurately identify the location of the tumor. This requires other instrumental studies. So, cancer:

• the esophagus and stomach are detected during fibroesophagogastroduodenoscopy;
• colonoscopy reveals intestines;
• lungs - bronchoscopy;
• cervix - smear examination, etc.

Tumor markers

Today, immunological diagnostics are becoming increasingly popular. Here, the blood taken for analysis is studied to detect antigens produced by the body in response to the formation of tumors. In a healthy person, they are contained in minimal quantities or are absent altogether. Accordingly, an increase in the indicator indicates oncology.

Scientists have identified more than 300 types of proteins, hormones and enzymes, the production of which increases in the body during cancer. At the same time, each marker allows you to confirm only the presence of a certain type of tumor. Often such tests are not informative (especially in the early stages). Their more universal varieties can only indicate the development of the process and are not able to accurately identify the location of its localization.

For example, prostate cancer is diagnosed using the PSA antigen. At the same time, it is often produced in large quantities:

• in older men due to age-related changes;
• for infectious diseases;
• after some procedures.

The CEA antigen (carcinoembryonic) confirms the growth of a neoplasm in:

• lungs;
• colon;
• mammary gland.

AFP protein is produced by malignant tumors that affect:

• testicles;
• liver.

Besides:

• melanoma signals itself with the S-100 protein;
• pancreatic disease is indicated by CA 19-9;
• cancer of the stomach, lung, and breast is detected by CA 72-4;
• When the thyroid gland degenerates, it begins to produce large amounts of calcitonin.

All forms of cancer have their own unique antigens:

• small cell;
• carcinoma;
• leukemia;
• non-small cell;
• squamous.

With all this, there is no need to talk about 100% accuracy of the tumor marker. For this reason, they are taken only after identifying the main characteristic symptoms and conducting other types of research. To a large extent, they are used to track the progression of the disease, the effectiveness of therapeutic measures, etc.

A blood test can tell the doctor a lot. What is the number of red blood cells, how quickly do they settle, how many leukocytes, what is the hemoglobin level, and so on. By how much various indicators deviate in one direction or another, certain diseases can be diagnosed. A blood test for blood cancer, for example, is the most accurate diagnostic method.

What will a general analysis show?

Many patients are interested in whether specialists will immediately see unfavorable indicators if they do a blood test for blood cancer. Yes, an attentive doctor may immediately suspect oncology based on the results of the study. Sometimes it is possible to determine cancer with one hundred percent probability only from a blood test. But most often, to make an accurate diagnosis, doctors also use other diagnostic methods to avoid mistakes.

What should you be wary of?

The first indicator that should cause concern is the number of leukocytes and their qualitative composition. A general blood test for cancer usually shows a large number of leukocytes, which are significantly higher than normal. In cases of cancer, there are also many young forms of leukocytes in the blood. It is worth paying close attention to this indicator when deciphering the blood test.

With blood cancer, leukocytosis sometimes just goes off scale. An experienced laboratory doctor can even immediately determine the type of leukemia, because under a microscope one can see myeloblastomas or lymphoblastomas, which are characteristic of the body specifically in cancer. A blood test will not help answer the question of whether the process is chronic or acute. Only a bone marrow test will show this.

Reduced hemoglobin and increased ESR

Hemoglobin and ESR are two more important points that the doctor pays attention to when reading a blood test. In case of blood cancer, these two important indicators differ significantly from the norm. This should alert your doctor.

As a rule, a general blood test for cancer shows an increase in the erythrocyte sedimentation rate. If you prescribe antibacterial treatment or prescribe anti-inflammatory drugs, the ESR will not decrease. If the ESR is elevated, it is still difficult to say where exactly the malignancy is located. Here X-rays, ultrasound of internal organs, magnetic resonance imaging, and fluoroscopic examination will come to the rescue.

Hemoglobin is another indicator that will differ significantly from the norm in cancer. A blood test in this case will show a reduced level. If the patient has not had recent operations, injuries, or heavy periods, he eats normally and leads a normal lifestyle, low hemoglobin should always alert the doctor. Hemoglobin decreases sharply and quickly if there are malignant formations in the intestines or stomach.

You should not make a diagnosis yourself. There are a number of diseases when there is no tumor in the internal organs, and the blood test clinic is the same as for oncology. Only doctors should have their say here. Will a blood test show cancer? This is a question to which there is no clear answer. Sometimes a whole range of additional studies is required to give a final conclusion.

What causes cancer?

Doctors and scientists from all over the world have long been trying to answer the important question of why some people develop cancer. There are a number of factors at work here, and one of them cannot be put in first place. For example, it is still unknown why leukemia occurs. Scientists identify the following factors in which the risk of developing leukemia is very high:

1. With radiation, when the body is irradiated for a long time and with high doses.
2. Prolonged contact with chemicals, especially benzenes. They are present in both cigarette smoke and gasoline. So if you smoke or work at a gas station, your risk of getting leukemia increases.
3. In the future, leukemia may develop in those patients who undergo chemotherapy for other types of oncology.
4. Chromosomal congenital diseases (Down syndrome and others) increase the likelihood of developing acute leukemia.

But doctors don’t have a consensus on heredity. In medicine, it is rare for members of the same family to suffer from blood cancer. The only exception is chronic lymphocytic leukemia.

A person should be wary if he experiences an unexplained increase in body temperature that is prolonged. Enlarged lymph nodes and frequent colds are also reasons to consult a doctor. If you often experience joint pain, aching bones, constant bleeding gums, or nosebleeds, you should immediately seek advice from a specialist.

Chronic or acute leukemia

Of course, the first stage of diagnosis if cancer is suspected will be a blood test. With blood cancer, it is also important to determine whether the course of the disease is acute or chronic. The fact is that acute leukemia progresses very quickly; serious complications arise in the patient in just a few months. But chronic leukemia is dangerous because for many years it can proceed secretly, without symptoms. But nevertheless, the disease, even in its latent stage, is constantly progressing. To detect it early, it is necessary to perform a bone marrow biopsy.

What to do if your blood test is bad?

Timely treatment can stop the disease and prevent serious complications. Therefore, if the blood test gives bad results, you must take bone marrow for testing. Only after the puncture can you clearly answer what type of tumor is in your body and what its nature is. Treatment tactics depend on this.

General blood test for oncology is the initial stage of diagnosis. When compiling a leukocyte formula, various pathological conditions of the body can be identified. Even with a slight deviation from normal values, patients need additional examination to identify the cause.

There is no exact definition of what an analysis should be for oncology. Data depend on the affected organ, stage of development, nature of the disease. The individual characteristics of each patient are also of great importance. But in the course of research, a general change in several blood parameters was identified, which suggests cancer.