Country music fans are mourning the death of Dolly Parton, who has passed away at the age of 80 following what her team described as a brief battle with cancer.
Parton died Tuesday at Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center surrounded by loved ones. While her team has not publicly revealed the type of cancer she was battling, her death has renewed attention around an important health message: cancer does not always begin with dramatic or unmistakable symptoms.
Some of the earliest warning signs can be subtle enough to dismiss as stress, aging, a lingering illness, or simply being tired.
Dr. Jiri Kubes, a radiation oncologist and medical director at Proton Therapy Center, explained that persistent exhaustion, unexplained weight loss, and a cough that refuses to disappear are among the symptoms people should pay attention to.
However, he stressed that experiencing any one of these symptoms does not automatically mean someone has cancer.
“One symptom on its own rarely points to cancer, and the vast majority of people experiencing these symptoms will not have cancer. The important thing is persistence.” Continue Reading ⬇️