The symptoms produced by metastatic breast cancer vary by the location of the metastases. For instance:

- Metastatic disease to the bone causes severe, progressive pain, and, less commonly, pathological fracture, erythema over the affected bone, and swelling.

- Metastatic breast cancer to the brain causes the following symptoms: persistent, progressively worsening headache, visual changes, seizures, nausea or vomiting, vertigo, behavioral and personality changes, and increased intracranial pressure.

- Metastatic disease to the liver causes jaundice, elevated liver enzymes, abdominal pain, loss of appetite, nausea, and vomiting

- Metastatic breast cancer to the lung or pleura causes chronic cough, dyspnea, abnormal chest X-ray, and chest pain.

- Other nonspecific systemic symptoms of metastatic breast cancer include fatigue, malaise, weight loss, and poor appetite.

Resistant cancer or refractory cancer is the cancer that doesn't respond to treatment. It may be resistant at the beginning of treatment, or it may become resistant during treatment.

Metastatic breast cancer, also referred to as metastases, advanced breast cancer, secondary tumours, secondaries or stage 4 breast cancer, is a stage of breast cancer where the disease has spread to distant sites beyond the axillary lymph nodes. There is no cure for metastatic breast cancer. There is no stage after IV.

It usually occurs several years after the primary breast cancer, although it is sometimes diagnosed at the same time as the primary breast cancer or, rarely, before the primary breast cancer has been diagnosed.

Metastatic breast cancer cells frequently differ from the preceding primary breast cancer in properties such as receptor status. The cells have often developed resistance to several lines of previous treatment and have acquired special properties that permit them to metastasize to distant sites. Metastatic breast cancer can be treated, sometimes for many years, but it cannot be cured. Distant metastases are the cause of about 90% of deaths due to breast cancer.

Breast cancer can metastasize anywhere in body but primarily metastasizes to the bone, lungs, regional lymph nodes, liver and brain, with the most common site being the bone. Treatment of metastatic breast cancer depends on location of the metastatic tumours and includes surgery, radiation, chemotherapy, biological, and hormonal therapy.

Typical environmental barriers in a metastatic event include physical (a basement membrane), chemical (reactive oxygen species or ROS, hypoxia and low pH) and biological (immune surveillance, inhibitory cytokines and regulatory extra-cellular matrix (ECM) peptides) components. Organ-specific anatomic considerations also influence metastasis; these include blood-flow patterns from the primary tumor and the homing ability of cancer cells to certain tissues. The targeting by cancer cells of specific organs is probably regulated by chemo-attractant factors and adhesion molecules produced by the target organ, along with cell-surface receptors expressed by the tumor cells.

Early prostate cancer usually has no clear symptoms. Sometimes, however, prostate cancer does cause symptoms, often similar to those of diseases such as benign prostatic hyperplasia. These include frequent urination, nocturia (increased urination at night), difficulty starting and maintaining a steady stream of urine, hematuria (blood in the urine), and dysuria (painful urination). A study based on the 1998 Patient Care Evaluation in the US found that about a third of patients diagnosed with prostate cancer had one or more such symptoms, while two-thirds had no symptoms.

Prostate cancer is associated with urinary dysfunction as the prostate gland surrounds the prostatic urethra. Changes within the gland, therefore, directly affect urinary function. Because the "vas deferens" deposits seminal fluid into the prostatic urethra, and secretions from the prostate gland itself are included in semen content, prostate cancer may also cause problems with sexual function and performance, such as difficulty achieving erection or painful ejaculation.

Metastatic prostate cancer that has spread to other parts of the body can cause additional symptoms. The most common symptom is bone pain, often in the vertebrae (bones of the spine), pelvis, or ribs. Spread of cancer into other bones such as the femur is usually to the proximal or nearby part of the bone. Prostate cancer in the spine can also compress the spinal cord, causing tingling, leg weakness and urinary and fecal incontinence.

Prostate cancer is the development of cancer in the prostate, a gland in the male reproductive system. Most prostate cancers are slow growing; however, some grow relatively quickly. The cancer cells may spread from the prostate to other parts of the body, particularly the bones and lymph nodes. It may initially cause no symptoms. In later stages it can lead to difficulty urinating, blood in the urine, or pain in the pelvis, back or when urinating. A disease known as benign prostatic hyperplasia may produce similar symptoms. Other late symptoms may include feeling tired due to low levels of red blood cells.

Factors that increase the risk of prostate cancer include: older age, a family history of the disease, and race. About 99% of cases occur in those over the age of 50. Having a first-degree relative with the disease increases the risk two to threefold. In the United States, it is more common in the African American population than the white American population. Other factors that may be involved include a diet high in processed meat, red meat, or milk products or low in certain vegetables. An association with gonorrhea has been found, but a reason for this relationship has not been identified. Prostate cancer is diagnosed by biopsy. Medical imaging may then be done to determine if the cancer has spread to other parts of the body.

Prostate cancer screening is controversial. Prostate-specific antigen (PSA) testing increases cancer detection but does not decrease mortality. The United States Preventive Services Task Force recommends against screening using the PSA test, due to the risk of overdiagnosis and overtreatment, as most cancer diagnosed would remain asymptomatic. The USPSTF concludes that the potential benefits of testing do not outweigh the expected harms. While 5α-reductase inhibitors appear to decrease low-grade cancer risk they do not affect high-grade cancer risk and thus are not recommended for prevention. Supplementation with vitamins or minerals does not appear to affect the risk.

Many cases can be safely followed with active surveillance or watchful waiting. Other treatments may include a combination of surgery, radiation therapy, hormone therapy or chemotherapy. When it only occurs inside the prostate it may be curable. In those in whom the disease has spread to the bones, pain medications, bisphosphonates and targeted therapy, among others, may be useful. Outcomes depend on a person's age and other health problems as well as how aggressive and extensive the cancer is. Most people with prostate cancer do not end up dying from the disease. The 5-year survival rate in the United States is 99%. Globally it is the second most common type of cancer and the fifth leading cause of cancer-related death in men. In 2012 it occurred in 1.1 million men and caused 307,000 deaths. It was the most common cancer in males in 84 countries, occurring more commonly in the developed world. Rates have been increasing in the developing world. Detection increased significantly in the 1980s and 1990s in many areas due to increased PSA testing. Studies of males who died from unrelated causes have found prostate cancer in 30% to 70% of those over age 60.

The first symptoms of neuroblastoma are often vague making diagnosis difficult. Fatigue, loss of appetite, fever, and joint pain are common. Symptoms depend on primary tumor locations and metastases if present:

- In the abdomen, a tumor may cause a swollen belly and constipation.

- A tumor in the chest may cause breathing problems.

- A tumor pressing on the spinal cord may cause weakness and thus an inability to stand, crawl, or walk.

- Bone lesions in the legs and hips may cause pain and limping.

- A tumor in the bones around the eyes or orbits may cause distinct bruising and swelling.

- Infiltration of the bone marrow may cause pallor from anemia.

Neuroblastoma often spreads to other parts of the body before any symptoms are apparent and 50 to 60% of all neuroblastoma cases present with metastases.

The most common location for neuroblastoma to originate (i.e., the primary tumor) is in the adrenal glands. This occurs in 40% of localized tumors and in 60% of cases of widespread disease. Neuroblastoma can also develop anywhere along the sympathetic nervous system chain from the neck to the pelvis. Frequencies in different locations include: neck (1%), chest (19%), abdomen (30% non-adrenal), or pelvis (1%). In rare cases, no primary tumor can be discerned.

Rare but characteristic presentations include transverse myelopathy (tumor spinal cord compression, 5% of cases), treatment-resistant diarrhea (tumor vasoactive intestinal peptide secretion, 4% of cases), Horner's syndrome (cervical tumor, 2.4% of cases), opsoclonus myoclonus syndrome and ataxia (suspected paraneoplastic cause, 1.3% of cases), and hypertension (catecholamine secretion or renal artery compression, 1.3% of cases).

Squamous-cell thyroid carcinoma (SCTC) is rare malignant neoplasm of thyroid gland which shows tumor cells with distinct squamous differentiation. The incidence of SCTC is less than 1% out of thyroid malignancies.

Squamous epithelial cells are not found in normal thyroid, thus the origin of SCTC is not clear. However, it might be a derived from the embryonic remnants such as thyroglossal duct or branchial clefts. Often SCTC is diagnosed in one of the thyroid lobes, but not in the pyramidal lobe. Another possible way of SCTC development can be through the squamous metaplasia of cells. However, that theory is also controversial, since the Hashimoto's thyroiditis and chronic lymphocytic thyroiditis (neoplasms to be showed squamous metaplasia) are not associated with SCTC. Primary STCT is usually diagnosed in both lobes of thyroid gland. The histopathology of STCT shows a squamous differentiation of tumor cells.

Neuroblastoma (NB) is a type of cancer that forms in certain types of nerve tissue. It most frequently starts from one of the adrenal glands, but can also develop in the neck, chest, abdomen, or spine. Symptoms may include bone pain, a lump in the abdomen, neck, or chest, or a painless bluish lump under the skin.

Occasionally neuroblastoma may be due to a mutation inherited from a person's parents. Environmental factors have not been found to be involved. Diagnosis is based on a tissue biopsy. Occasionally it may be found in a baby by ultrasound during pregnancy. At diagnosis the cancer has usually already spread. The cancer is divided into low, intermediate, and high risk groups based on a child's age, cancer stage, and what the cancer looks like.

Treatment and outcomes depends on the risk group a person is in. Treatments may include observation, surgery, radiation, chemotherapy, or stem cell transplantation. Low-risk disease in babies typically has a good outcome with surgery or simply observation. In high-risk disease chances of long term survival, however, are less than 40% despite aggressive treatment.

Neuroblastoma is the most common cancer in babies and the third most common cancer in children after leukemia and brain cancer. About 1 in every 7,000 children is affected at some point in time. About 90% of cases occur in children less than 5 years old and it is rare in adults. Of cancer deaths in children about 15% are due to neuroblastoma. The disease was first described in the 1800s.

Because many organs can be affected by myeloma, the symptoms and signs vary greatly. A mnemonic sometimes used to remember some of the common symptoms of multiple myeloma is CRAB: C = calcium (elevated), R = renal failure, A = anemia, B = bone lesions. Myeloma has many other possible symptoms, including opportunistic infections (e.g., pneumonia) and weight loss. CRAB symptoms and proliferation of monoclonal plasma cells in the bone marrow are part of the diagnostic criteria of multiple myeloma.

Some symptoms (e.g., weakness, confusion, and fatigue) may be due to anemia or hypercalcemia. Headache, visual changes, and retinopathy may be the result of hyperviscosity of the blood depending on the properties of the paraprotein. Finally, radicular pain, loss of bowel or bladder control (due to involvement of spinal cord leading to cord compression) or carpal tunnel syndrome, and other neuropathies (due to infiltration of peripheral nerves by amyloid) may occur. It may give rise to paraplegia in late-presenting cases.

When the disease is well-controlled, neurological symptoms may result from current treatments, some of which may cause peripheral neuropathy, manifesting itself as numbness or pain in the hands, feet, and lower legs.

Chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting (CINV) is a common side-effect of many cancer treatments. Nausea and vomiting are two of the most feared cancer treatment-related side effects for cancer patients and their families. In 1983, Coates et al. found that patients receiving chemotherapy ranked nausea and vomiting as the first and second most severe side effects, respectively. Up to 20% of patients receiving highly emetogenic agents in this era postponed, or even refused, potentially curative treatments. Since the 1990s, several novel classes of antiemetics have been developed and commercialized, becoming a nearly universal standard in chemotherapy regimens, and helping to better manage these symptoms in a large portion of patients. Efficient mediation of these unpleasant and sometimes crippling symptoms results in increased quality of life for the patient, and better overall health of the patient, and, due to better patient tolerance, more effective treatment cycles.

There are several subtypes of CINV. The classifications of nausea and vomiting are:

- Acute: occurring within 24 hours of chemotherapy

- Delayed: occurring between 24 hours and 5 days after treatment

- Breakthrough: occurring despite prophylactic treatment

- Anticipatory: triggered by taste, odor, memories, visions, or anxiety related to chemotherapy

- Refractory: occurring during subsequent cycles when antiemetics have failed in earlier cycles

The symptoms tend to be similar to AML in general with the following being possible symptoms:

- Anemia

- Fatigue

- Weakness

- Difficulty breathing (dyspnea)

- Low platelets (thrombocytopenia) leading to easy bleeding

- Fever

- Infection as a result of low neutrophils (neutropenia)

- Elevated white blood cells (leukocytosis)

- Coagulopathy (including DIC)

Easy bleeding from low platelets may include:

- Bruising (ecchymosis)

- Gingival bleeding

- Nose bleeds (epistaxis)

- Increased menstrual bleeding (menorrhagia)

About 50% of all cancer patients suffer from cachexia. Those with upper gastrointestinal and pancreatic cancers have the highest frequency of developing a cachexic symptom. This figure rises to 80% in terminal cancer patients. In addition to increasing morbidity and mortality, aggravating the side effects of chemotherapy, and reducing quality of life, cachexia is considered the immediate cause of death of a large proportion of cancer patients, ranging from 22% to 40% of the patients.

Symptoms of cancer cachexia include progressive weight loss and depletion of host reserves of adipose tissue and skeletal muscle. Cachexia should be suspected if involuntary weight loss of greater than 5% of premorbid weight occurs within a six-month period. Traditional treatment approaches, such as appetite stimulants, 5-HT antagonists, nutrient supplementation, and COX-2 inhibitor, have failed to demonstrate success in reversing the metabolic abnormalities seen in cancer cachexia.

Diagnosis usually occurs at an early stage of disease progression.

Adult T-cell leukemia/lymphoma (ATL or ATLL) is a rare cancer of the immune system's own T-cells.

Human T cell leukemia/lymphotropic virus type 1 (HTLV-1) is believed to be the cause of it, in addition to several other diseases.

Cachexia is often seen in end-stage cancer, and in that context is called "cancer cachexia". Patients with congestive heart failure can have a cachectic syndrome. Also, a cachexia comorbidity is seen in patients who have any of the range of illnesses classified as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Cachexia is also associated with advanced stages of chronic kidney disease, cystic fibrosis, multiple sclerosis, motor neuron disease, Parkinson's disease, dementia, HIV/AIDS and other progressive illnesses.

ATL is usually a highly aggressive non-Hodgkin's lymphoma with no characteristic histologic appearance except for a diffuse pattern and a mature T-cell phenotype. Circulating lymphocytes with an irregular nuclear contour (leukemic cells) are frequently seen. Several lines of evidence suggest that HTLV-1 causes ATL. This evidence includes the frequent isolation of HTLV-1 from patients with this disease and the detection of HTLV-1 proviral genome in ATL leukemic cells. ATL is frequently accompanied by visceral involvement, hypercalcemia, skin lesions, and lytic bone lesions. Bone invasion and osteolysis, features of bone metastases, commonly occur in the setting of advanced solid tumors, such as breast, prostate, and lung cancers, but are less common in hematologic malignancies. However, patients with HTLV-1–induced ATL and multiple myeloma are predisposed to the development of tumor-induced osteolysis and hypercalcemia. One of the striking features of ATL and multiple myeloma induced bone disease is that the bone lesions are predominantly osteolytic with little associated osteoblastic activity. In patients with ATL, elevated serum levels of IL-1, TGFβ, PTHrP, macrophage inflammatory protein (MIP-1α), and receptor activator of nuclear factor-κB ligand (RANKL) have been associated with hypercalcemia. Immunodeficient mice that received implants with leukemic cells from patients with ATL or with HTLV-1–infected lymphocytes developed hypercalcemia and elevated serum levels of PTHrP. Most patients die within one year of diagnosis.

Infection with HTLV-1, like infection with other retroviruses, probably occurs for life and can be inferred when antibody against HTLV-1 is detected in the serum.

Ann Arbor staging is used to classify tumors and symptoms. Stage IV disease is very rare.

Chronic lymphoid leukemia (CLL) is a type of cancer in which the bone marrow makes too many lymphocytes (a type of white blood cell). Early on there is typically no symptoms. Latter non-painful lymph nodes swelling, feeling tired, fever, or weight loss for no clear reason may occur. Enlargement of the spleen and anemia may also occur. It typically worsens gradually.

Risk factors include having a family history of the disease. Agent Orange and certain insecticides might also be a risk. CLL results in the build up of B cell lymphocytes in the bone marrow, lymph nodes, and blood. These cells do not function well and crowd out healthy blood cells. It is divided into two main types those with a mutated IGHV gene and those without. Diagnosis is typically based on blood tests finding high numbers of mature lymphocytes and smudge cells.

Management of early disease is generally with watchful waiting. Infections should more readily be treated with antibiotics. In those with significant symptoms chemotherapy or immunotherapy may be used. The medications fludarabine, cyclophosphamide, and rituximab are typically the initial treatment in those who are otherwise healthy.

CLL affected about 904,000 people globally in 2015 and resulted in 60,700 deaths. The disease most common occurs in people over the age of 50. Males are affected more often than females. It is much less common in people from Asia. Five-year survival following diagnosis is approximately 83% in the United States. It represents less than 1% of deaths from cancer.

Most people are diagnosed without symptoms as the result of a routine blood test that shows a high white blood cell count. Less commonly, CLL may present with enlarged lymph nodes without a high white blood cell count or no evidence of the disease in the blood. This is referred to as small lymphocytic lymphoma. In some individuals, the disease comes to light only after the cancerous cells overwhelm the bone marrow resulting in anemia producing tiredness or weakness.

Acute promyelocytic leukemia (APML, APL) is a subtype of acute myeloid leukemia (AML), a cancer of the white blood cells. In APL, there is an abnormal accumulation of immature granulocytes called promyelocytes. The disease is characterized by a chromosomal translocation involving the retinoic acid receptor alpha ("RARα" or "RARA") gene and is distinguished from other forms of AML by its responsiveness to all-"trans" retinoic acid (ATRA; also known as tretinoin) therapy. Acute promyelocytic leukemia was first characterized in 1957 by French and Norwegian physicians as a hyperacute fatal illness, with a median survival time of less than a week. Today, prognoses have drastically improved; 10-year survival rates are estimated to be approximately 77% according to one study.

Richter's syndrome (RS), also known as Richter's transformation, is a transformation which occurs in about 5-10% of B cell chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) and hairy cell leukemia into a fast-growing diffuse large B cell lymphoma, a variety of non-Hodgkin lymphoma which is refractory to treatment and carries a bad prognosis. There is also a less common variant in which the CLL changes into a Hodgkin's lymphoma. Rarely, transformations to a form of myeloid leukemia have been observed. These extraordinarily rare transformations carry a very poor prognosis.

Richter's transformation affects about 5% of CLL patients at some point during their lives.

Symptoms of Richter’s transformation in a CLL patient include fever (without infection), an elevated serum levels of lactate dehydrogenase, and rapidly enlarging lymph nodes. While about 8% of all CLL patients will have elevated levels of serum lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), more than 50% of CLL patients with Richter's transformation will have elevated LDH levels.

Richter's can appear suddenly, even in patients who were in remission.