Nine out of ten patients with the most common tumours can be cured with an early diagnosis

Specialists at Quirónsalud point out that nine out of ten patients with the most common tumours can be cured if detected in their early stages, such as breast, prostate, and colon cancer.

Listen to this article

Breast cancer is the most common tumour among the female population, accounting for almost 30% of all cancers diagnosed in women and also the most diagnosed tumour worldwide. For this reason, Dr. Marta Huertas, radiologist at the Diagnostic Imaging Service of the Quirónsalud Murcia Hospital, stresses the importance of performing a mammogram.

Dr. Huertas points to tomosynthesis mammography as the great evolution in this diagnostic field, since it allows a more advanced study by reducing the overlapping of structures and allowing the identification of lesions that could remain hidden. “Thanks to the tomosynthesis mammography we are able to diagnose lesions in earlier stages, reduce the performance of complementary tests or repetitions compared to conventional mammography, as well as improv the assessment of dense breasts,” says the radiology specialist at Quirónsalud Murcia.

In the case of men, prostate cancer is, without a doubt, the most common tumour, which forces us to emphasise the importance of prevention and early diagnosis of this tumour to preserve health in men. As for its early diagnosis, Dr. Javier Pérez, urologist at the Quirónsalud Valencia Hospital, recommends “the performance of prostate-specific antigen (PSA) blood testing from the age of fifty and, if elevated, digital rectal examination (DRE) as the most important tools to identify possible cases of prostate cancer in early stages.”

Another technique in case of suspicion will be fusion biopsy, which is considered the best diagnostic test, especially in the case of areas suspected of harbouring prostate cancer cells in an MRI. “It is especially recommended in lesions that are difficult to access, when lesions are observed in the MRI and the clinical suspicion of prostate cancer persists after a negative biopsy for a tumour, and to consider surveillance of low-risk tumours or focal therapies,” says the urology specialist at Quirónsalud Valencia.

If we talk about both sexes, the most prevalent type of tumour would be colon cancer,  a tumour whose incidence, says Dr. Pedro Bretcha, head of Surgical Oncology at the Quirónsalud Torrevieja Hospital, has increased by 22% in the last decade.

Regarding the early detection of colon cancer, there is consensus that a study should be carried out from the age of fifty to all those people without risk factors, such as the annual faecal occult blood test, which has proven to be as effective as other diagnostic tests. “As for people at increased risk,” says Dr. Bretcha, “they should enter a study program at a younger age and more frequently. In the case of people with a first-degree relative under the age of 60 with colon cancer or two first-degree relatives at any age, they should have a colonoscopy starting at age 40 or 10 years before the relative’s diagnosis, and from that point on, repeat every five years.”