When to Suspect Cancer and What to Do

Categories: Constitutional Diseases

External or Exposed
Cancer. Cancer of the exposed or surface parts of the body, such as the

skin of the lip, nose, cheek, forehead, temples, etc., is more readily

recognized than internal cancer, and is therefore more liable to early

operation and prompt cure. One rarely sees these forms of cancer in an

advanced stage, because such cases are readily seen and recognized by

physicians in the early stage of development, when ope ation can be

sufficiently early to effect a lasting cure.



The least malignant of all cancers is that kind which first exhibits

itself by a hardening of the skin, forming a nodule looking pimple or a

mole and having a dark red color, due to tortuous blood vessels, upon the

sides of the nose near the eyes, upon the cheek bones, forehead or

temples. This form of epithelioma is called rodent ulcer, flat epithelioma

or cancroid and sometimes does little harm for many years, but should

receive the attention of a physician familiar with cancer and its

eradication.



Deep or squamous cancer occurs on the lip, the tongue or the forehead or

wherever the mucous membrane joins the skin, and is characterized by a

hard, deep-seated sore formed upon any such part, growing down into the

flesh and having a dark red or purplish-red color.






If such a cancer is suspected of being present, the patient should at once

seek diagnosis from a competent physician. Cancer of the lip is more

frequent in men than in women, occurring usually in the under lip and

called "Smoker's Cancer." Any hard persistent nodule in the under lip

should cause suspicion and should be taken to a skilled surgeon, as cancer

of the under lip is easily removed when in its early stage of development.