Cancer can happen to anyone, both older persons and children. If not immediately get the right treatment, of course this disease can be very dangerous even life-threatening.
Unfortunately, the Pediatric Cancer Symptoms are often unnoticed by parents. In addition, children still have difficulty realizing if there are health problems in their body. This makes the symptoms of cancer in children quite difficult to recognize.
However, parents still have to learn to recognize it in order to detect the disease as early as possible. If cancer treatment is done from the beginning of its appearance, it can increase the potential for successful treatment.
Pediatric Cancer Symptoms
Pediatric cancer detected earlier will be easier to treat and have a greater chance of recovery. The following symptoms of cancer in children should not be ignored, namely:
Bleeding Without Obvious Cause
Bleeding without cause is one of the main symptoms of cancer. Nosebleeds are a type of bleeding that is often experienced by children who have cancer. The appearance of this bleeding occurs because the blood vessels in the front of the nose are still too thin. If your child’s nose often bleeds at least 4-5 times a month, it could be a symptom of cancer. Be careful, it has better gotten him checked out at the doctor.
Wounds that do not heal
Children are very actively moving. That’s why they are easily injured while playing, exercising or doing other strenuous activities.
Only, if the wound of the child does not heal, especially tends to settle, then beware even though the wound can be in the part of the body that is difficult to heal. For example wounds on the skin, pe**nis, vagi**na or even the oral cavity.
Enlarged lymph nodes
Enlargement of the lymph nodes sometimes does not hurt, but it can be a symptom of Non-Hodgin Lymphoma cancer. Swelling can occur in the neck, armpits, groin, chest, and abdomen, or other parts of the body where the lymph nodes are located.
Enlarged lymph nodes close to the surface of the body, such as on the side of the neck, underarm, groin, and above the collarbone can be easily seen or felt like a lump under the skin.
Other general symptoms
Here are some other common symptoms of the appearance of cancer in children.
- Drastic weight loss
- Headaches, often accompanied by vomiting in the morning
- Feeling pain in one part of the body
- Bruises or rashes appear on parts of the body without any impact
- Appears swollen on one part of the body
- Often tired when not doing strenuous activities
- Decreased viewing ability
- Recurrent or persistent fever of unknown causes
- Looks pale and powerless, which is not clear cause
- Lumps appear.
Other symptoms that appear depend on what type of cancer the child is experiencing. In addition, each child may show different symptoms of cancer that cannot be equated with one child or another.
Pediatric Cancer Symptoms Depend on The Type
Of the many types of cancer, there are six types of cancer that most commonly occur in children. Many cancers affect children, including blood cancer, eye cancer, nerve cancer, bone cancer, nasopharyngeal cancer, and lymph node cancer. Here are each of the symptoms of the cancer:
Blood cancer
Blood cancer or leukemia is a disorder in the production of white blood cells in the body. Some symptoms of leukemia in children, namely fever with chills, less appetite, bone and joint pain, swollen lymph nodes, weakness, fatigue, shortness of breath, pale, bleeding without cause, bruises, and abdominal swelling.
Eye cancer
Eye cancer or also called retinoblastoma commonly appears in children under 5 years of age. When this cancer strikes, the child may show symptoms such as white pupils, cat-like eyes, squinting, red eye area, blurred vision, and enlarged and inflamed eyeballs.
Nerve cancer
Nerve cancer or neuroblastoma can also occur in children. Symptoms that can occur, including swollen abdomen or neck area, lack of appetite, developmental disorders, bone pain, fever, swollen lymph nodes, weakness, paleness, weak legs, back pain, urinary disorders, bleeding around the eyes, eyes protruding, eyelids down one side, dry eyes, and paralysis.
Bone cancer
Bone cancer is one type of cancer that is quite common in children. This cancer is also called osteosarcoma, and the symptoms that appear are generally specific to the bones. Symptoms that can occur if the child has bone cancer, namely bone pain at night or after activity, swelling in the painful bone area with a red and warm surface of the skin, sudden fractures, difficulty moving the limbs, the back area feels continuous pain, fever, pale, tired quickly, and drastic weight loss.
Nasopharyngeal cancer
The nasopharynx is the part of the throat that is located close to the nose. It is part of the respiratory system. In nasopharyngeal cancer, the child can show symptoms such as, lymph nodes in the neck swell, blocked nose continues, frequent nosebleeds, inflammation of the middle ear, ringing ears, headaches, fever, unable to open or shut the mouth, and difficulty swallowing.
Lymph node cancer
If the child has lymph node cancer, there are several symptoms you can recognize, such as swelling of the armpits, groin or neck that does not hurt, shortness of breath, fever, night sweats, lethargy, decreased appetite, weight loss, and clogged gastrointestinal tract.
