Testicular cancer is often classed into two types: seminoma and non-seminoma. Around half are seminomas, which begin in young germ cells that go on to become sperm. Seminoma testicular cancers tends to grow relatively slowly and luckily do not often spread beyond the testicle. Thanks to cancer research, survival rates for testicular cancer have risen dramatically. But the more we can understand about the different types, the better cures we can develop for patients worldwide.
Is seminoma testicular cancer curable?
The good news is that testicular cancer is one of the most curable cancers in the world. Our Curestarter Jack was naturally terrified to discover a lump in his testicle, but he credits research and early detection with his very positive outcome.
Over 95% of men with testicular cancer will be cured, just like Jack, meaning that there is no evidence of the disease (sometimes called NED).
Testicular cancer cure rates do vary a little depending on the type of the cancer, the stage and how well it responds to treatment. Seminoma testicular cancers grow slowly, so they can be detected early and therapy generally works very well on them. This means they have particularly high survival rates and treatment is normally straightforward.
Even though survival rates are already high, researchers are still working hard to help us reach a day where no life anywhere is cut short by testicular cancer.
How is seminoma testicular cancer staged?
If you or anyone you know has experienced a cancer diagnosis you may have heard the term stages or grades. These are ways to help doctors classify your particular cancer and work out the best treatment for you.
Doctors work out the stage and grade by carrying out examinations and tests. Seminoma testicular cancer is fortunately often detected at the earliest stage when it is easiest to treat. However, thanks to years of international cancer research, even later-stage seminomas often respond well to treatment.
Seminoma testicular cancer staging explains the size of your tumour and whether it has spread:
Stage 1:
The earliest stage of seminoma testicular cancer, where the cancer is only found in the testicle.
Stage 2:
The cancer has spread to local lymph nodes in the stomach. There are different groups within Stage 2 depending on the size and number of lymph nodes affected.
Stage 3:
The cancer has spread further, to lymph nodes in the chest or higher up. Stage 3 also has sub-types within it depending on how far the cancer has spread.
What type of cancer is seminoma?
Testicular cancer is an umbrella term for cancers that begin in the testicles. Most testicular cancers develop from cells called germ cells that grow into sperm. You might also hear these referred to as germ cell tumours.
There are 2 main types of germ cell tumours: seminomas and non-seminomas.
Seminomas tend to affect people aged 15 to 50. They are slow-growing, less aggressive and not likely to spread to other parts of the body. They are called seminomas because they are specifically made up of seminoma cancer cells which develop from the germ cells that line the walls of tiny tubes in the testicles.
Non-seminoma testicular cancers grow from other types of germs cells or sometimes a mix of cell types. In comparison, they usually affects people between the ages of 15 and 35, are more aggressive and are more likely to spread than seminomas.
What are the symptoms of seminoma testicular cancer?
Symptoms for testicular cancer vary from patient to patient, so it’s important to check your testicles regularly and to speak to your doctor if you notice any changes.
Seminoma testicular cancer has similar symptoms to other types of testicular cancer. These include:
- A lump or swelling in your testicle
- A change in testicle size
- An ache or pain in your testicle
- Your scrotum feeling heavy, firm or hard
- A pain in your stomach or back
How is seminoma testicular cancer diagnosed?
Like most cancers, there is no one test that can simply diagnose testicular cancer. Tests that help build up a clear picture for diagnosis include:
- Ultrasound scan. This painless scan uses sound waves to show a picture of the inside of your testicles.
- Blood tests. Running tests on a sample of your blood can sometimes detect particular chemicals which can be an indicator of cancer.
These scans help doctors understand if you have testicular cancer and if so, what particular type. Non-seminoma has increased levels of certain chemicals in the blood, but seminoma testicular cancer does not. Seminomas tend to look uniform because they come from only one type of germ cell, but non-seminomas can look more irregular.
How is seminoma testicular cancer treated?
The most common treatment for seminoma testicular cancer is surgery. A relatively simple operation called an orchidectomy or orchiectomy is often done to remove the testicle affected - this has a very high success rate for curing testicular cancer.
After surgery some patients may also need other treatments. Chemotherapy is sometimes given if doctors think there is a high chance of your cancer coming back or if the cancer has spread beyond the testicle.
If the cancer has spread to the lymph nodes in your abdomen then radiotherapy may be used to kill these other cancer cells.
Why is more research into seminoma testicular cancer needed?
For most people, treatment for seminoma testicular cancer leads to a cure. However, active surveillance and monitoring is still required to make sure that if the cancer does return it can be detected and treated early.
It is thanks to cancer research like ours that survival rates for seminoma testicular cancer have increased so remarkably. By better understanding how the cancer develops, research has paved the way to better diagnostics and treatments for this disease.
But we can't stop here. Ongoing research is helping to improve the quality of life for seminoma testicular cancer patients even further. A trial in London found that one chemotherapy cycle was as effective as two cycles at preventing cancer coming back, which means less stressful treatment and fewer nasty side effects for patients.
What progress is Worldwide Cancer Research making?
As an international cancer charity, we fund new research into any cancer type, in any country around the world.
Most people are now surviving a testicular cancer diagnosis thanks to the years of vital research that have already gone into studying this disease. But we still don’t know a huge amount about what actually causes testicular cancer and how it develops in the first place.
If we could understand more about how testicular cancer grows we could help prevent more cases from ever developing.
Like other cancers, testicular cancer happens because of mistakes, or mutations, in our DNA. Thanks to Curestarter support, Professor Chris Hutchinson at the University of Durham has explored a gene which is often mutated in testicular cancer.
This sort of early stage discovery research is essential to drive new breakthroughs about the disease that will lead to new, even better ways to prevent, diagnose and treat testicular cancer in the future.
Your testicular cancer FAQs:
What is seminoma testicular cancer?
Around half of testicular cancers are seminomas, which begin in young germ cells that go on to become sperm. Seminoma testicular cancers tends to grow relatively slowly and luckily do not often spread beyond the testicle.
How is seminoma testicular cancer different from non-seminoma testicular cancer?
Seminoma testicular cancers are relatively slow growing and less aggressive than non-seminomas. They are made up of seminoma cancer cells which develop from the germ cells lining the walls of tiny tubes in the testicles.
Non-seminoma testicular cancers can grow faster and are more likely to spread to other parts of the body. They grow from non-seminoma cells in the testicles or sometimes have a mix of cell types.
Seminomas generally affect people ages between 15 and 50 whereas non-seminomas tend to affect people between the ages of 15 and 35.
How is seminoma testicular cancer staged?
Seminoma testicular cancer has three main stages, according to how much the cancer has spread. In stage 1 the cancer is all in the testicle, in stage 2 it has spread to lymph nodes in the stomach, and in stage 3 it has spread to lymph nodes in the chest or higher. Because they are slow-growing, most seminomas are detected in stage 1 which makes them easier to treat.
What treatments are used for seminoma testicular cancer?
The most common treatment for seminoma testicular cancer is surgery. Often this is the only treatment needed but sometimes chemotherapy or radiotherapy are used after surgery to make sure all the cancer is destroyed and to help stop it coming back.
Why is research still needed for seminoma testicular cancer?
Survival rates for testicular cancer have improved dramatically thanks to research and now most patients can be cured. But there is a lot we still don’t know about testicular cancer and what causes it. Discovery research is the best way to find the answers.
2,300 men in the UK are diagnosed with testicular cancer every year in the UK. We hope that research will help us reduce this number, or to find new cures that would improve the quality of life for people affected.
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