Testicular cancer is a malignant tumor that starts in the cells of the testicle. In other words, when you have testicular cancer, you have an uncontrolled growth of malignant cells in one or both of your testicles. Unlike many cancers, testicular cancer responds well to medical treatment; however, the therapies (surgery, radiotherapy and chemotherapy) often lead to infertility.
Depending on the group of cells affected, testicular cancer are grouped into two broad categories: seminoma testicular cancer and nonseminoma testicular cancer.
- Seminoma is more common in older men, and tends to have a good prognosis. The tumor grows slowly and responds well to radiation therapy.
- Nonseminoma, in the other hands, grows quickly, and tends to be very aggressive. Unlike the seminoma, nonseminoma testicular cancer is not sensitive to radiotherapy. Seminoma testicular cancer includes several subtypes:
- a)teratocarcinoma , represent about 30% of testicular cancer
- b)embryonal carcinoma, account for 20% of testicular cancer
- c)Choriocarcinoma, the rarest and highly malignant form of testicular cancer.