Several types of cancer and other noncancerous conditions have the same symptoms. Your doctor will want you to participate in various diagnostic tests, including a blood test and a biopsy, before he confirms a diagnosis.
Cancer Blood Test
Blood tests don't always provide enough information to confirm a cancer diagnosis. However, these tests do offer important clues as to what might be going on inside your body. Your doctor tests your blood sample for several things to help understand what's causing your symptoms.
Cancer Blood Test Function
If you have a blood cancer, such as leukemia, a blood test should detect the cancer cells. If your blood test has a certain abnormal immune system protein, it could be a sign of multiple myeloma. If you have a solid tumor cancer, your blood may contain a chemical made by tumor cells called tumor markers.
Results
There are many things that can affect the outcome of blood tests. Some noncancerous conditions cause an abnormal blood test, whereas blood tests can come back with a normal result even though the patient has cancer. Often your doctor uses the cancer blood test to help decide which other tests to order
Tissue Biopsy
During a biopsy, your doctor removes a small sample of tissue or suspicious cells for testing. The lab views the sample under a microscope, looking for signs of cancer. Your doctor can perform a biopsy on any body part; she uses the pathology report from the biopsy to make a diagnosis.
Considerations
Typically, you'll undergo several diagnostic tests before your doctor diagnoses cancer. Blood tests and biopsies are only two of the many tests and procedures available to diagnose cancer.
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