Diagnosing Germ Cell Tumors

The first step of diagnostic evaluation involves performing a physical examination and taking a careful medical history. This is generally followed by various procedures, depending on the particular symptoms:

• CT scan of chest, abdomen and pelvis, with oral and intravenous contrast
• Ultrasound of testes (if it is a testicular tumor) or abdomen (if it is an ovarian tumor)
• Blood tests for AFP and bHCG (these levels are elevated in some germ cell tumors)
• Blood tests to measure blood counts and liver and kidney functions
• Baseline hearing evaluation
• Pulmonary function tests for lung evaluation
• Nuclear medicine GFR test for kidney assessment