Cancer

The body tends to signal when something's wrong. Cancer, at its root, is cells that have lost their normal checks and balances: growing where they shouldn't, when they shouldn't. Because those cells can start almost anywhere, the warning signs vary widely from person to person.

Watch for unexplained weight loss, persistent fatigue, unusual lumps or swelling, skin changes, pain that doesn't resolve, changes in bowel or bladder habits, a cough or hoarseness that won't quit, and unusual bleeding or discharge. Any one of these could mean something else entirely. Still, the body rarely raises a flag for no reason, and symptoms that stick around deserve a real evaluation.

Here's the hard part: in its earliest and most treatable stages, cancer often causes no symptoms at all. That's the whole case for regular screening. Catch a disruption early, and you have more options. If something feels off, get it checked.

Certain cancers show up more often in specific populations, but across the board, risk climbs with age. Family history matters too, as do lifestyle habits and what you've been exposed to over a lifetime.

Diagnosis usually starts with a physical exam, then moves to imaging (CT, MRI, PET, X-ray), blood work, and finally a tissue biopsy, which is still the only way to confirm cancer definitively. Staging tests come next, showing how far things have progressed and shaping the treatment plan. From there, patients are typically referred to an oncologist who coordinates the rest of their care.

GWCIM doesn't run routine cancer screenings or make diagnoses ourselves. Our role is supporting patients who already have a diagnosis. Occasionally, something we find in testing prompts us to refer someone out to an oncologist.

Cancer rarely has one cause. Genetics play a role (mutations you're born with or ones that develop over time), and so do tobacco use, heavy alcohol consumption, chronic inflammation, exposure to carcinogens like radiation or certain chemicals, viral infections such as HPV or hepatitis B and C, obesity and metabolic dysfunction, a suppressed immune system, hormonal imbalances, and stress that's gone on too long. Most of the time it's not one thing. It's several factors stacking up over years.

An integrative approach takes all of that into account, not just to support treatment, but to lower the odds of the cancer coming back.