Last Updated:November 06, 2024, 21:49 IST

Trust your instincts and seek a medical opinion on time; also, make it a regular habit to undergo check-ups so that one can have the best chances of beating cancer in its earliest stages.

Cancer is one of the health conditions that prove very difficult to cure, but it is early detection that enhances the success rate of treatments. Recognising the early warning signs of cancer can help save lives, although the symptoms are wide-ranging based on the type and location of the disease. Dr Deepak Jha, Chief-Breast Surgery & Sr. Consultant, Surgical Oncology, Artemis Hospital shares all you need to know.

Unexplained weight loss, fatigue that does not seem to end, and pain are the most common signs of cancer. Some cancers also cause a change in the skin appearance or moles. Even some early-stage cancers may show unusual bleeding or persistent coughs. Such symptoms can be dismissed as minor issues but should not be neglected if they last for quite a long time.

Some cancers can have rare symptoms, which can make it more challenging to detect them at an early stage. For instance, jaundice or dark urine might be the only symptoms before the patient complains of pain from pancreatic cancer. Ovarian cancer can cause bloating or changes in bowel habits. Brain tumours may result in unexplained headaches, changes in vision, or even personality changes. Such signs do not necessarily indicate cancer but are essential signs that a doctor should investigate.

The essence of the fight against cancer is awareness. Early detection enables effective treatment and thus boosts survival rates. No single symptom indicates cancer, so learn to trust your body and see a doctor when these signs are seen. Routine screenings and health checks increase the possibility of discovering cancer in its most treatable early stages.

In short, early detection of cancer significantly improves the rate of success in treatment. Never neglect any unusual body changes; it may indicate something is amiss. Trust your instincts and seek a medical opinion on time; also, make it a regular habit to undergo check-ups so that one can have the best chances of beating cancer in its earliest stages.

Actress Jenna Fischer, known for her role as Pam Beesly in the sitcom “The Office,” revealed that she was diagnosed with breast cancer last year but is now cancer-free after receiving treatment.

Fischer said in a post on Instagram on Tuesday she was diagnosed with Stage 1 triple-positive breast cancer in December of last year after an inconclusive mammogram led to a breast ultrasound. 

“I never thought I’d be making an announcement like this but here we are. Last December, I was diagnosed with Stage 1 Triple Positive Breast Cancer. After completing surgery, chemotherapy and radiation I am now cancer-free,” Fischer wrote. 

The Instagram post included a series of slides detailing her cancer diagnosis and treatment. She also urged her followers to schedule their annual mammograms. 

Fischer wrote that triple-positive breast cancer is an aggressive form of cancer but is highly responsive to treatment. She said she underwent a lumpectomy to remove a tumor in January, followed by 12 rounds of weekly chemotherapy and weeks of radiation. “Luckily my cancer was caught early and it hadn’t spread to my lymph nodes or throughout the rest of my body,” she wrote. 

“I’m happy to say I’m feeling great,” Fischer added.

Fischer also revealed she had lost her hair during the chemotherapy and had been wearing wigs.

“I’m making this announcement for a few reasons. One, I’m ready to ditch the wigs. Two, to implore you to get your annual mammograms,” she wrote.

“I’m serious, call your doctor right now,” she added. “My tumor was so small it could not be felt on a physical exam. If I had waited six months longer, things could have been much worse. It could have spread.”

In the post she also thanked her medical team, husband, family and friends. “It takes a village to fight cancer, and I have had an amazing village,” Fischer, a mother of two children, 10 and 13, wrote. 

She also thanked her best friend and “The Office” co-star Angela Kinsey, “who protected and advocated for me.”

Fischer and Kinsey host a podcast, “Office Ladies,” where they discuss episodes of “The Office” and share behind-the-scenes stories about the sitcom.

“For a long time, she was the only person in my workspace who knew,” Fischer wrote. “When I lost my hair, she wore hats to our work meetings so I wouldn’t be the only one. When I needed a break, we took one. I am so lucky to have a career with this kind of flexibility. Cancer treatment requires a lot of flexibility. For a gal who likes to plan, that was a hard adjustment. But, continuing to work has brought so much joy to my life during treatment.”

London — Getting a hug from Catherine, the Princess of Wales, wasn’t even on 16-year-old Liz Hatton’s bucket list. But the budding photographer, who was diagnosed with terminal cancer early this year, not only got an emotional embrace from Princess Kate at Windsor Castle on Wednesday, but was lauded for inspiring Kate as she recovers from her own bout with cancer.

Kate announced only weeks ago that she’d completed chemotherapy after doctors discovered cancer following an abdominal surgery in January. It was that same month that doctors told Hatton she had the extremely rare cancer desmoplastic small round cell tumor — and that she likely only had six months to three years to live.

Scans revealed tumors on Hatton’s ovaries and liver after she experienced abdominal pain over Christmas. Only about a dozen people are diagnosed with the aggressive form of cancer in England every year, according to cancer charity Sarcoma UK, and no standard treatment regimen exists. 

In May, with time ticking, Hatton’s mother Vicky Robayna published her daughter’s photography bucket list on social media.

“We hope every day for a lifetime for her but if we can’t achieve that we hope to create her a lifetime of memories,” wrote Robayna. “If we can make even one of her photography bucket-list happen for her she will be beyond delighted.” 

Hatton’s list included photographing a major West End musical, the catwalk runway at London Fashion Week, famous music festivals and professional models. It did not include photographing the future British monarch, but Hatton’s mother noted that she’d appreciate “any other photography-based opportunities.”

“Please help us to give her the life she deserves in the short time she has,” her mother said to end the post. 

Princess Kate, an avid amateur photographer herself, invited the teenager to help document a private royal award ceremony after her husband William, the Prince of Wales, learned about Hatton through his support of London’s Air Ambulance Charity. On Wednesday, William and Kate welcomed Hatton to Windsor Castle for the event, and then stood with Hatton and her family for some more photos. 

“A pleasure to meet with Liz at Windsor today. A talented young photographer whose creativity and strength has inspired us both,” the royal couple said in a post on their shared social media account. “Thank you for sharing your photos and story with us.”

“Such lovely, genuine and kind people, I’m over the moon that my family and I had this experience,” Hatton wrote in reply.

“It’s a day none of us will ever forget and we are so very grateful to you all,” added her mother.

In June, Hatton’s mother told CBS News’ partner network BBC News that her daughter’s end-of-life diagnosis had “changed all our lives in a way we didn’t expect.” 

“We were out looking at universities a month before. It all happened very suddenly,” said Robayna.

Hatton’s mother and father have told their daughter that from now on, just “follow your heart.”

Hatton has since received offers to photograph the productions of “Wicked” and “Cabaret” in London’s West End, in addition to the Royal Marines — and she has already had the opportunity to watch a filming of her favorite TV show.

Ramy Inocencio

Ramy Inocencio is a CBS News foreign correspondent based in London, covering Europe and the Middle East. He joined the Network in 2019 as CBS News’ Asia correspondent, based in Beijing and reporting across the Asia-Pacific, bringing two decades of experience working and traveling between Asia and the United States.

Former British Prime Minister Boris Johnson claims in his soon-to-be released memoir that Queen Elizabeth II was diagnosed with bone cancer before her death in September 2022 at the age of 96. His assertion represents a significant break with royal protocol between the prime minister’s office and Buckingham Palace, under which the U.K.’s elected leaders generally keep the royal family’s private matter to themselves. 

Johnson makes the claim in his upcoming memoir, “Unleashed,” which is scheduled for release later in October. An excerpt from the book, with the purported detail about the late queen’s health, was published this week in Johnson’s regular column for the Daily Mail newspaper.

No senior British government official or member of the royal family has previously disclosed any detail about the late queen’s cause of death. An official death certificate published a week after Queen Elizabeth died listed the cause of death as “old age.” 

“I had known for a year or more that she had a form of bone cancer, and her doctors were worried that at any time she could enter a sharp decline,” Johnson says in his book. “She seemed pale and more stooped, and she had dark ­bruising on her hands and wrists, probably from drips or injections.'”

Although he said the queen seemed to be ailing, Johnson said she was still sharp in his final meeting with her. 

“Her mind… was completely unimpaired,” he writes. “She still flashed that great white smile in its sudden mood-lifting beauty.”

Johnson who served as the U.K. prime minister between 2019 and 2022, met with Elizabeth just days before she died at her Scottish residence, Balmoral Castle, to hand her his formal resignation as the country’s leader. 

Buckingham Palace declined to comment when asked by CBS News about Johnson’s claim. The palace typically does not comment on claims about the private lives of royal family members in books or print.  

While Johnson’s remarks break with the long-time tradition of U.K. prime ministers not commenting publicly on what’s said during private meetings with royal family members, they are not entirely unprecedented. 

In 2014, then-Prime Minister David Cameron apologized to Queen Elizabeth for disclosing details of a private conversation with her about the results of a referendum in which Scots rejected the idea of Scotland’s secession from the United Kingdom to become an independent state. 

Cameron had been overheard telling former New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg the monarch appeared relieved that the Scots had voted in favor of remaining in the U.K., suggesting the late queen had “purred down the line” after the final results.

Former British leaders Tony Blair and Gordon Brown have also given some detail of conversations and interactions they had with Queen Elizabeth in books about their time in office. 

Elizabeth’s first son, who became King Charles III upon her death, broke with the long-standing precedent of not revealing personal royal health news earlier this year, when Buckingham Palace revealed that he was being treated for cancer, though the palace has not reveal what type of cancer he’s being treated for.

A month after the revelation about the monarch’s health trouble, his daughter-in-law Catherine, the Princess of Wales, revealed her own cancer diagnosis. Princess Kate said in September that she had completed her treatment, but that her “path to healing” would be long.

Knowing one’s cancer diagnosis can become a source of shock and trigger for a lot of people, who may not be expecting it.

Cancer is one of the most widespread conditions worldwide, according to the World Health Organisation (WHO). The National Cancer Institute (NCI) estimates that in the United States alone, there were around 1,806,590 new cases in 2020.

One important way of coping with a diagnosis of cancer is to be well informed as receiving it can come as a shock to anyone. An aura of myth often surrounds cancer and much of what people think they know can often just be hearsay.

As a result, an important first step is to get as much information as possible from doctors and other reliable sources.

Dany Bell, a specialist advisor on treatment and recovery at Macmillan Cancer Support in the United Kingdom, said “Being diagnosed with cancer can be a big shock, even if you already suspected you might have it.”

“Cancer is a word that can stir up many fears and emotions,” added Bell, “but making sure you fully understand your diagnosis can help you feel more in control of the situation.”

As the subject of a cancer diagnosis is always a heavily loaded one, so communicating with a doctor might feel challenging. It might be difficult for both the person and the doctor to communicate efficiently.

Dr Ann O’Mara, head of palliative care research in the NCI’s Division of Cancer Prevention, told Medical News Today that there is no magical recipe for success in these cases. However, she said that open communication is very important to ensure that people get the information they need and that the doctor knows how they are coping with the diagnosis.

“If the communication with that physician is causing you to be more stressed out, you have to communicate that to the physician,” she said.

Moreover, after receiving a cancer diagnosis, symptoms of depression and anxiety are often a natural outcome. A strong support network is also important to be able to count on.