Adrenal cancer is a relatively rare cancer of the endocrine system, but risk factors and specific symptoms must not be ignored. Early diagnosis and innovative methods of cancer treatment in clinics in Israel allow to prolong the patient’s life and to return him to a full life.
Risk factors
The causes of the development of adrenal cancer are still not fully understood, so among the risk factors for the formation of this malignant tumor, oncologists distinguish common ones that are characteristic of any oncological disease.
- Genetic predisposition.
- Chronic diseases of the endocrine system and congenital pathologies.
- Improper nutrition with heavy consumption of fats, especially heat-treated ones, as well as all kinds of food carcinogens.
- Bad habits, including smoking, drugs, and alcohol abuse.
- Poor ecology and work in hazardous production in the environment of industrial carcinogens.
- Frequent self-medication without a doctor’s prescription.
Symptoms of adrenal cancer
Any cancer of the endocrine system affects the hormonal background, destabilizing it in the direction of those hormones for the production of which the organ affected by the tumor is responsible. Adrenal cancer is characterized by an imbalance of cortisol and the male sex hormone testosterone. This leads to the characteristic symptoms.
- Frequent depression, irritability, poor adaptability to a changing environment.
- Male pattern of hair distribution in females with simultaneous hair loss on the head and coarsening of the voice.
- Muscle weakness and spasms, as if after intense physical activity, due to an excess of cortisol.
- Irregular menstrual cycle.
- Loss of appetite and high blood sugar.
- Tendency to hematomas.
Unlike other types of cancer, adrenal cancer is not characterized by weight loss, but, on the contrary, is characterized by a causeless increase in body weight, even with a weak appetite.
Diagnostics
- Laboratory blood tests (hormones and general biochemistry).
- Computed tomography, magnetic resonance imaging, and positron emission tomography (CT, MRI, and PET).
- Ultrasound examination (US);
- Biopsy of the adrenal gland tissues.
- Phlebography (X-ray of the organ vessels to determine the presence of blood clots and other abnormalities in blood supply).
Treatment of adrenal cancer in Israel
- Laparoscopic surgery.
- Hormone therapy. Adrenal cancer is a hormone-dependent cancer. Treatment with special hormonal drugs allows you to slow down or completely stop the growth of the neoplasm.
- Ablation. Small tumors are removed by a non-surgical method, acting on it with high-frequency currents, literally burning it out. Also, the cold effect on the neoplasm is used – cryoablation.
- Radiotherapy. The high-precision linear accelerator exclusively targets the tumor, without effecting the living, healthy adrenal tissue.
- Targeted therapy – special drugs which affect only cancer cells.
- Gentle chemotherapy with a new generation of drugs is prescribed in Israeli clinics for the treatment of mainly metastatic adrenal cancer.
The use by Israeli oncologists of innovative methods and their own developments in the field of cancer treatment, combined with the availability of all conditions for comprehensive rehabilitation after a course of therapy, allows in most cases to completely recover from this oncological disease of the endocrine system.