What is cancer?
Cancer is a term for uncontrolled cell division, which results in tumors, organ damage, and dysfunction. Some cancers form rapidly, while others develop slowly.
Your cells are supposed to maintain a consistent lifespan. When a cell dies, your body replaces it with a new one with better functioning. Cancer impedes this process, and cells build up in your body, using nutrients that would normally go to the newer cells.
If you have cancer, it may start in one area and move via the lymphatic system to other regions. This process is called metastasis and makes it much harder to treat the cancer.
What is a cancer screening?
A cancer screening is a non-invasive test to check for cancer throughout your body. You should consider getting a cancer screening at Life Imaging Fla if your risk for cancer is particularly high because of your family’s medical history, an exposure to carcinogens, or your occupation.
Common causes and contributing factors for cancer include:
- Tobacco
- Radiation
- Chemicals
- Genetic variations
Life Imaging Fla offers cancer screenings using low-dose CT scans, a type of imaging test that combines numerous X-ray images into one comprehensive image of the targeted region. The team can perform the screening test on your chest, abdomen, and pelvis.
While a cancer screening can’t make a definitive diagnosis, it can direct your radiologists and physicians to areas of concern. The detailed images can show abnormalities as small as 1 millimeter in diameter. In order to know for sure whether or not a growth is cancerous, your physician will need to perform a biopsy.
Which types of cancer can a cancer screening test detect?
A cancer screening at Life Imaging Fla can result in the early detection of several different types of cancer that can affect various organs and organ systems. Early detection improves your outlook greatly since cancer is the easiest to treat in its earliest stages.
Cancer screenings at Life Imaging Fla have helped diagnose cancers of the:
- Thyroid
- Lungs
- Kidneys
- Duodenum
- Prostate
- Colon
- Liver
- Stomach
- Uterus
Life Imaging Fla cancer screening tests have also helped diagnose hairy cell leukemia, a rare cancer that grows slowly and affects your blood. It causes your bone marrow to produce too many lymphocytes, which tend to look hairy when viewed through a microscope.
Cancer is most treatable when you find it early, which a screening test can do. To schedule your cancer screening for early detection, call Life Imaging Fla or request an appointment online today.
