When is cancer curable?

The diagnosis of cancer hides a whole group of pathologies that share a common feature: the abnormal structure of cells and their uncontrolled reproduction. According to the prevalence in Russia, malignant formations occupy the 3rd place among socially significant diseases. Over the past decade, the incidence rate in the country has increased by 20.4% per 100,000 population. Therefore, the fight against cancer is one of the top priorities of medicine today.

One of the main methods of cancer treatment is surgery. But even its successful implementation does not always lead to recovery. What determines the success of therapy and when should it be started?

When to start treatment

The neoplasm is dangerous due to its increase in size, invasion of nearby organs and tissues, and the appearance of secondary foci called metastases. Like any disease, in the absence of help, cancer progresses and is more difficult to treat.

However, at an early stage, oncological pathologies practically do not manifest themselves in any way and are extremely difficult to diagnose. As a result, the patient seeks help when the tumor has already reached a considerable size, which makes treatment more difficult and reduces the chances of success.

Oncologists judge the success of therapy by the level of five-year survival. Its indicators depend on many factors, including timely treatment. When contacting doctors at the first stage, Russian medicine predicts a 93% survival rate, at the second stage the figures are 75%, at the third – 55%. At the fourth stage, the chances decrease to 13%.

Despite the fact that cancer cells multiply quite quickly, a few weeks of delayed treatment will not affect its outcome. Therefore, when establishing an accurate diagnosis, it is not necessary to immediately go to the first clinic you find. There is still time to choose a doctor who can be fully trusted. But it's still not worth delaying the treatment.

Indeed, for some tumors, there is a safe interval between diagnosis and the start of therapy. So, for lung cancer, it is 2 months. Urgent treatment is also required for pancreatic neoplasms.

Which types of cancer are best treated?

Diseases that are treated successfully enough at an early stage include:

• cancer of the breast and cervix – in the early stages, treatment is effective in almost 100%;
• prostate malignancy – if the tumor has not spread beyond the gland, the probability of success is 95%;
• testicular tumor – it is most often removed and chemotherapy is prescribed, recovery occurs in 96% of cases;
• Bowel cancer – with early-stage therapy, 9 out of 10 patients recover.

The effectiveness of therapy largely depends on its quality and timely diagnosis. But oncologists note another factor – the right attitude of the patient. The probability of recovery increases significantly if the patient does not give up and shows a willingness to fight the disease in all ways.