How Likely Are Nighttime Nosebleeds Caused by Cancer?
A nosebleed especially at night in a person with health anxiety will bring to mind cancer as a cause, especially since cancer CAN arise inside the nose. (more…)
Can Blood in Stools Look Like Scattered Red Bits of Food ?
Just exactly what would fresh blood in “bloody stools” look like?
Could they appear as random red bits or specks of food? Would there be a reddish film covering the stools? (more…)
Can Cancer of the Penis Make It Smell?
Many men notice a bad odor coming from their penis.
Cancer can affect the penis and has a high mortality rate.
If a man begins detecting a smell from his penis, the first thing that should come to his mind is that the odor is most likely being caused by poor hygiene. (more…)
Foot Drop, No Other Symptoms: ALS or Brain Tumor?
For people with ALS anxiety, foot drop is often at the top of their worries.
They may imagine foot drop and wonder if it’s ALS or a brain tumor causing it. (more…)
Can Cancer Cause Only One Nostril to Be Clogged?
What is the likelihood that when someone has a persistently clogged single nostril that it’s cancer?
When a bothersome symptom occurs on only one side, this can cause a lot of anxiety, bringing to mind the possibility of a malignancy.
A malignant mass on some area of the body very rarely has an opposite side twin. Symptoms from cancer usually appear on one side of the body when left-right quadrants are applicable.
For example, a bleeding or inverted nipple from breast cancer; an eye symptom or leg weakness from a brain tumor; or a nose symptom from a sinus tumor.
Though many cancers cause symptoms that don’t involve sides of the body, such as bloody bowel movements, weight loss, suppressed appetite, fatigue, coughing, a hoarse voice and difficulty swallowing, many symptoms DO involve one side or the other – determined by the cancer’s location.
Cancer in the left lung, for example, might cause pain in the left shoulder, but not the right shoulder.
So when just one nostril is stuffed up – longer than it should be from a cold – this gets some people really worrying about a tumor.
“Although it is possible that a clogged nostril is from a cancer of some kind, cancer is really far down the list of potential causes,” says Gene Liu, MD, MMM, President, Chair, Department of Surgery; Chief, Division of Otolaryngology, Cedars-Sinai Medical Group.
“Astronomically more common than cancer are explanations such as a deviated septum, enlarged turbinates [nasal structure], polyps, fungus/mold, foreign bodies and many benign growths,” explains Dr. Liu.
Benign Growths of the Nasal Cavity
• Cysts – Fluid filled sac.
• Hemangioma – Vascular concentration.
• Inverting papilloma – Wart-like growth.
• Osteoma – Bony overgrowth.
• Polyps – Overgrowth of the mucosal lining of the nasal cavities.
Dr. Liu explains, “Many types of cancer can cause a clogged nostril, but all of them are rare.
“Nasopharyngeal cancer, squamous cell cancer, other cancers involving the mucosal lining, esthesioblastoma and sinonasal undifferentiated carcinoma (SNUC) are just some of the types that can be found in the sinuses or nasal cavity.”
If you put all these cancers, that can cause one nostril to be blocked, together, they’d comprise a very small percentage of ALL the possible things inside the nose that can stuff up only one nostril.
Want more reassurance? Consider the risk factors for sinus or paranasal cancer:
• Occupational exposure to wood, leather or nickel dust
• Smoking
• Occupational exposure to the chemicals used to make rubbing alcohol
• Occupational exposure to radium-226
• Epstein-Barr virus
• Inverted papilloma. This rare and benign growth has up to a 10 percent chance of malignant ransformation.
Additional Reassurance
Stop thinking that cancer is causing one nostril to be clogged. Paranasal cancers are very rare.
Dr. Liu’s clinical areas of focus cover a broad range including surgery of the head and neck, sinuses and thyroid, and disorders of the ears, salivary glands and vocal cords.
Lorra Garrick has been covering medical, fitness and cybersecurity topics for many years, having written thousands of articles for print magazines and websites, including as a ghostwriter. She’s also a former ACE-certified personal trainer.
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Top image: Shutterstock/FREEPIK2
Source: cancer.ca/en/cancer-information/cancer-type/nasal-paranasal/risks/?region=on
Can You Die from a Vocal Cord Spasm Attack?
It’s frightening as heck to have a vocal cord spasm, but what are the chances that the muscles won’t relax in time and you then die of asphyxiation? (more…)
Can Laryngeal Cancer Cause Throat pain WITH Ear Pain?
Laryngeal cancer often causes throat pain, but what are the odds that both throat and ear pain at the same time are caused by a malignant tumor of the larynx?
Throat pain or discomfort without any apparent cause can be very unsettling, even to those who’ve never smoked. (more…)
Cardboard Taste in Mouth After Doing Jumping Cardio Exercise
Does your mouth taste like cardboard or sawdust after doing intense cardio, particularly of an agitated nature such as jumping?
This is likely caused by exercise-induced acid reflux. (more…)
Choroidal Nevus Getting Bigger: Is this Melanoma?
Has your eye doctor said your choroidal nevus is bigger?
Though it’s uncommon for a choroidal nevus to become a melanoma, all eye melanomas were once a choroidal nevus.
What is a choroidal nevus?
A mole or freckle located at the back of the eye, known as a choroidal nevus or retinal freckle, is a type of pigmented lesion that is not visible to the patient.
These lesions are located in parts of the eye that cannot be seen without specialized instruments, such as those used by an ophthalmologist.
People typically remain unaware of the presence of these unless an eye specialist identifies them during a comprehensive eye examination.
These pigmented spots are distinct from birthmarks, as they are not present at birth but develop over time.
While rare in childhood, choroidal nevi can begin to form later in life.
Their presence is often discovered during routine eye exams or when investigating other symptoms.
Despite their rarity in children, these lesions may become more apparent as a person ages or undergoes regular eye screenings.
It’s estimated that two to 13 percent of the population have these “eye freckles.”
They need to be monitored, just as common skin moles need to be, for signs of melanoma.
What’s scary about a choroidal nevus is that the patient cannot examine it, and this can create anxiety and a feeling of powerlessness, while visible skin areas can be easily inspected on a monthly basis.
An ocular oncologist is the ideal physician for routine surveillance of a choroidal nevus, which can be flat or slightly elevated.
Choroidal Nevus Getting Bigger: Does this Always Mean Melanoma?
“Certain criteria of choroidal nevi could raise the red flag for melanoma, such as irregular margins, elevation and growth of the nevus,” says Yuna Rapoport, MD, a board certified ophthalmologist with Manhattan Eye in NYC.
If you were to round up 500 people with a choroidal nevus and follow these interior moles for 10 years, one will have transformed into melanoma.
Or to put it another way, about 1,400 cases are diagnosed every year in the U.S.
Risk Factors
• Initial benign lesion has a thickness of over two millimeters but a base diameter exceeding seven mm.
• Overlying the “mole” is an orange pigment.
• The lesion is located less than three mm from the optic disc.
A choroidal melanoma will get bigger rapidly. However, a choroidal nevus will get bigger slowly – and over a period of several years, and this does not necessarily suggest a malignant transformation.
This gradual enlarging will be more evident in kids with one of these eye freckles, and the growth tends to taper off at around age 11.
Slow growth, then, is not concerning to an ocular oncologist, particularly if this is observed in pediatric patients who do not have other risk factors.
Yuna Rapoport, MD
Manhattan Eye uses state of the art LASIK technology and modern techniques for a safer and more precise correction surgery, and also provides services covering all aspects of eye health.
Lorra Garrick has been covering medical, fitness and cybersecurity topics for many years, having written thousands of articles for print magazines and websites, including as a ghostwriter. She’s also a former ACE-certified personal trainer.
Can Cardio Exercise Actually Prevent Diabetic Neuropathy?
You know that aerobics is beneficial for diabetic neuropathy, but what about cardio exercise to prevent this condition in the first place?
Diabetic neuropathy is a painful condition of the lower extremities. (more…)
