Lets say someone goes to the doctor: The doctor sees tumors in the lungs and in the liver. Why does the doctor know that its liver cancer that spread to the lungs and not lung cancer that spread to the liver?

Question

Lets say someone goes to the doctor: The doctor sees tumors in the lungs and in the liver. Why does the doctor know that its liver cancer that spread to the lungs and not lung cancer that spread to the liver?

In: 1592

Answer 1

If you’re going to an oncologist (cancer doctor), they probably have studied the types of cancer that they’re seeing in the patient. So they see patterns- for example, toe cancer usually spreads to knees, but toe cancer doesn’t usually spread to the brain. This is why it helps to go to a specialist- they know what to look for.