Carcinoma

Carcinoma starts in the epithelial tissue, which lines most of your organs, your body’s internal passageways and your skin. When you’re diagnosed with skin, breast, lung, liver, kidney, pancreatic or prostate cancer (to name only a few) — it could be one of these kinds of carcinoma, like:

• Adenocarcinoma: Can be found in the glands that line organs, like your breasts, prostate and stomach.
• Basal cell carcinoma: A type of skin cancer.
• Clear cell renal cell carcinoma: The most common type of kidney cancer.
• Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC): Liver cancer.
• Invasive ductal carcinoma or ductal carcinoma in situ: Grows in breast milk ducts.
• Lobular breast cancer (invasive lobular carcinoma): Grows in breast tissue.
• Merkel cell carcinoma: A fast-spreading skin cancer.
• Squamous cell carcinoma: Another type of skin cancer that also forms in mucous membranes in your lungs, throat, head and neck.
• Urothelial carcinoma (transitional carcinoma): A form of urinary tract cancer.

What to expect at your first visit

When you come in for your first appointment, it’s not unusual to worry about what’s going to happen next. That’s why we walk you through every step of diagnosis, treatment and follow-up. The first step is simple — we want you to share your story.

Whether your primary care provider (PCP) referred you to us, or you’ve noticed symptoms on your own, we want to hear about what brought you to Cleveland Clinic. We’ll ask you to share:

• What symptoms you’re having.
• How long you’ve had these symptoms.
• If the symptoms are getting worse.
• How the symptoms have affected your life.
• If anyone else in your family has had cancer.

We’ll also do a physical exam to look for signs of cancer and to check your overall health. For certain types of carcinoma, this may include an in-depth skin exam. We’ll also order blood tests to look for signs of cancer, like changes in protein and enzyme levels and tumor markers. Depending on what we learn from this first visit, we may also recommend other testing to confirm your diagnosis and also stage your cancer. This may include:

Imaging tests

Imaging tests help us get a closer look at what’s going on inside your body. We can check out any possible tumors and see if cancer has spread (metastasized). Depending on your needs, these tests could include:

• X-rays.
• Ultrasound.
• CT scan.
• MRI.
• PET scan.
• Mammogram.
• Upper endoscopy.
• Colonoscopy.
• Bronchoscopy.

Biopsy

A biopsy is the only way we can confirm carcinoma. Your provider will take a tissue sample and send it to the lab where our pathologists will test the sample for cancer cells.

Second opinions for carcinoma

A cancer diagnosis can be a real shock. You might be feeling anxious, worried and overwhelmed. But you also want to feel confident with your care team. You’ll want a team that listens to your concerns, answers your questions and gives you the best possible care. That’s why we encourage second opinions.

A second opinion can give you peace of mind, knowing that you’re in the most capable, compassionate hands. And because we know that cancer doesn’t wait, we always try to schedule your appointment with us as soon as possible.

Meet Your Carcinoma Team

We believe in a team-based approach to care at Cleveland Clinic. So, when you choose us, you’ll work with a team of providers from different specialties. All are carefully chosen to match your unique needs and diagnosis. Your care team could include:

• Oncologists.
• Radiologists.
• Dermatologists.
• Gastroenterologists.
• Urologists.
• Otolaryngologists.
• Pulmonologists.
• Surgeons.
• Pathologists.
• Genetic counselors.
• Nurse practitioners.
• Physician assistants.

Your team works together to plan and manage your care, meeting regularly to make sure your treatment is delivering the best possible results.

Carcinoma treatments depend on many things — like where the tumor is, how big it is and if it has spread. Your care team keeps your needs and goals in mind as they create a highly individualized care plan. You may have one or two types of treatment, or you may have several. Your providers will spend time with you going over all your options.

Throughout your treatment, your team keeps a close eye on how things are working for you. And they’ll adjust your care plan as needed. They’ll also help manage any side effects of your treatment, so you stay as comfortable as possible.  

Surgery

Surgery is often an option if the carcinoma hasn’t spread beyond where it started. We’ll try to use minimally invasive surgery to remove cancerous tissue whenever we can. When we do, it’s often possible to go home the same day as your surgery.

Systemic treatment

You may need one or more treatments that use medications to kill cancer cells throughout your body. Cleveland Clinic offers every type of systemic carcinoma treatment, like:

• Chemotherapy: You may have this before surgery to shrink a tumor. Or after surgery to destroy remaining cancer cells.
• Hormone therapy: This can reduce certain hormone levels to slow the growth of certain types of carcinoma.
• Immunotherapy: This treatment activates your body’s immune system to attack cancer cells. This is a new approach and is the focus of a great deal of research at Cleveland Clinic.
• Targeted therapy: We target certain characteristics of cancer cells to destroy them, without harming your healthy cells.
• Radiation therapy: This uses targeted energy beams (like X-rays) to destroy cancer cells or keep them from multiplying. It’s often used along with chemo and surgery and depending on the type of carcinoma, can help relieve symptoms.

Taking the Next Step

No one wants to hear the words, “You may have cancer.” But when you do, it’s important to have the best healthcare team on your side. At Cleveland Clinic, our experienced providers use the latest tests and newest treatments to provide you with highly skilled, personalized care. And we combine our expertise with the compassion and caring support you need to navigate life with carcinoma.