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What is cancer of unknown primary site?
Carcinoma of unknown primary (CUP) is a rare disease in which malignant (cancer) cells are found in the body but the place the cancer began is not known. Sometimes the primary cancer is never found. The signs and symptoms of CUP are different, depending on where the cancer has spread in the body.
Is cancer of unknown primary hereditary?
Older age. This type of cancer is most likely to occur in people older than 60. Family history of cancer. There’s some evidence that carcinoma of unknown primary might be associated with a family history of cancer that affects the lungs, kidneys or colon.
How is unknown primary cancer diagnosed?
Tests for Cancer of Unknown Primary
- Imaging tests such as x-rays, ultrasound, or CT (computed tomography) or MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) scans.
- Endoscopy exams to look at organs through a lighted tube placed into a body opening such as the mouth, nose, or anus.
- Blood tests.
How long does cancer take to metastasize?
In the clinical setting, the majority of metastases from malignant tumors are detected within five years of the initial diagnosis of the primary tumor.
How do you tell if a tumor is primary or secondary?
Secondary cancers are the same type of cancer as the original (primary) cancer. For example, cancer cells may spread from the breast (primary cancer) to form new tumors in the lung (secondary cancer). The cancer cells in the lung are just like the ones in the breast. Also called secondary tumor.
What happens if you can’t find the primary cancer?
Cells from this primary site may break away and spread to other parts of the body through the bloodstream or lymphatic system. These escaped cells can then grow and form other tumours, which are known as secondary cancers or metastases.
How do they treat cancer of unknown primary?
The main treatment for CUP is cancer drugs, most commonly chemotherapy. You often have a combination of 2 or 3 chemotherapy drugs. You may also have radiotherapy to help to control your symptoms and hormone therapy.
Why is the prognosis for cancer of unknown primary patients poor?
Because carcinoma of unknown primary (CUP) is not the primary cancer and has already spread when it was found, the potential to cure the cancer is less likely than finding a primary cancer early. Survival rates vary from person to person, ranging from months to several years.
Can you have two primary cancers?
Multiple primary malignancies (MPMs) are present when a patient is diagnosed with more than one primary malignancy and when each tumor is histologically unrelated to the others. MPMs are considered synchronous when they present within 6 months of one another.