fever and cancer

when is fever a sign of cancer?  what would be characteristic of fever with cancer?  what is temp. is considered fever and are people's temp. higher in the late afternoon?  thanks for any info.

[Fernando Roque, MD]

Hi.  There is no temperature level or fever pattern which specifically identifies cancer from other conditions which present with fever (like infection).  Fever should be taken in the context of the whole gamut of signs and symptoms the patient has, before a diagnosis can be arrived at.

There is a test, called the "Naproxen test" which may give us a hint that the fever is due to cancer and not something else.  In this test, the patient is given Naproxen for 3 straight days. If the fever resolves upon taking Naproxen, then it's more likely due to cancer.  If it doesn't resolve with Naproxen intake, then it's probably due to some other condition.