10 Warning Signs of Cancer in Women

Even though women are generally more realistic about danger signals than men, many do not pay attention to the warning signs that could signal cancer. Here are some danger signals that should never be ignored.

1. Changes in the breast become apparent to most women immediately but many are on the lookout only for “lumps”. However, there are other symptoms that they should also be aware of: thickening and rash-like redness of the skin, nipple discharges when not breastfeeding and changes in the nipple’s shape are all things that should be checked out immediately.

2. Skin pigmentation changes are also a danger signal, specially if bleeding develops or there is too much scaling on the skin.

3. Blood in the stool or urine is never a good sign and could signal colon cancer. Blood in the toilet could be from menstruation but it is good to get this checked and be sure.

4. Indigestion without any apparent reason is a caution sign for stomach cancer.

5. Lymph node changes, specially if they get larger and have been around for over a month, you need to get checked right away to make sure they are not due to an infection. These are under your armpit or your neck usually.

6. Unexplained fevers that linger without any signs of the flu or other infections may signal cancer in its early stages in the case of blood cancers like leukemia or advanced stages after cancer has already spread.

7. Unexplained weight loss should be considered a danger signal at any time and checked out right away. While it could be an overactive thyroid, this type of weight loss is normally considered cancer unless proved otherwise.

8. Unusual bleeding should never be ignored, specially bleeding that takes place between periods. Sometimes, gastrointestinal bleeding is mistaken for menstruation but anything that is out of the normal for you should be checked out and if you are normally regular, this is a danger signal. Some women do spot between periods and that’s OK but if this is a new development a checkup is urgent.

9. Difficulty in swallowing could be a sign of gastrointestinal cancer like cancer of the esophagus. This is so removed from the idea of cancer that many people, including women, never worry about it.

10. Depression accompanied by abdominal pain may point to pancreatic cancer. Although a link has been found, it has not been well understood yet but it should definitely be check out right away.