What are the symptoms of testicular yolk sac cancer in children?

The age of onset of cancer is generally after middle age, but in recent years, the incidence of cancer has gradually become younger. For example, testicular yolk sac cancer also occurs occasionally in children. Let's take a look at the symptoms of testicular yolk sac cancer in children.

The commonly used clinical staging of testicular tumors in children divides them into three stages, with emphasis on the extent of tumor spread and metastasis, which has practical significance for formulating treatment plans.

Stage I: The tumor is confined to the testis and epididymis, with no lymph node metastasis;

Stage II: The tumor has spread to the spermatic cord, scrotum, peritoneal groove, and abdominal lymph nodes, with no lymph node metastasis above the diaphragm.

Stage II a: no abdominal lymph node metastasis;

Stage II b: abdominal lymph node metastasis;

Stage III: There is metastasis to the lymph nodes above the diaphragm or other distant sites.

(2) Clinical manifestations: Testicular tumors in children are more common in infants under 5 years old, and the main manifestation is a slowly growing, hard, painless scrotal mass. Older children may have a feeling of heaviness in the scrotum and pulling of the peritoneal groove.

Patients with testicular tumor torsion often complain of scrotal pain; tumor bleeding and necrosis may have symptoms of acute orchitis; children with testicular malignant tumors may have scrotal effusion; these symptoms and signs must be differentiated from hydrocele, testicular inflammation, and hematoma. The initial symptoms of some children with testicular malignancy are compression symptoms of tumor metastasis, such as difficulty in urination and defecation caused by compression of abdominal lymph node metastasis.

(3) Diagnosis: The accurate diagnosis of testicular tumors in children mainly depends on the physician's high vigilance and careful examination of testicular enlargement in children. For cases of solid testicular masses in children, no pain, and negative transillumination tests, testicular tumors should be highly suspected, and the vast majority of them are malignant tumors. Therefore, in addition to examining the scrotal area, carefully examine the peritoneal groove, abdomen, and supraclavicular lymph nodes. However, puncture and fluid extraction for examination is not recommended for patients with malignant tumors and scrotal fluid accumulation to avoid tumor implantation and spread.