Lung Cancer and Women
Lung cancer kills more women every year than breast cancer. In fact, lung Cancer is the 2nd leading cause of death among both men and women with statistics showing it is an increasing problem for women especially as they have a proven susceptibility to developing lung cancer.
However, lung cancer poses additional risks and issues for women, and these can be generalised in one major way, and that is to do with smoking.
About 90% of all lung cancer deaths among women are as a direct result of smoking or breathing in someone else's second-hand smoke. (This is known as Passive smoking).
Even though research has proven that smoking cause a wide range of very serious health effects, 1 out of every 5 women in the U.S. and other western countries still smoke with this number rising with a disturbing regularity every year despite widespread advertising to show how dangerous it is.
Various research studies which have been completed indicate that women who are former smokers may still have a significantly elevated risk of developing lung cancer even 20 years after they have quit smoking. However it is only fair to say that once they do stop smoking, the overall risk of developing lung cancer does drop.
According to an article in the Journal of Clinical Oncology in 2005:
Female smokers are more likely than male smokers to develop lung cancer,
Women who have never smoked are more likely to develop lung cancer than men who have never smoked.
These differences are due to hormonal, hereditary, and metabolic differences between the sexes.
Female smokers are 13 times more likely to die of lung cancer than women who have never smoked, and female former smokers are 5 times as likely to die of lung cancer as women who have never smoked.
Women, even if they have never smoked, should be aware of their higher risks. Because of the elevated risks that smoking causes for lung cancer and a range of other serious diseases, female smokers in particular should think very carefully about quitting smoking as soon as possible, as even though their past history of smoking does make them more liable to developing lung cancer, at least the overall risk decreases once they quit.
Lung Cancer - Overview
Lung Cancer is a type of cancer that forms in tissues of the lung, usually in the cells lining air passages. Many lung cancers begin in the bronchi though others can start in other parts of the lungs. Lung cancer also has a tendency to form in the glands below the bronchi.
Lung Cancer - Probabilities
Lung cancer causes up to 30% of all cancer related deaths, and it is the 2nd leading cause of death among both men and women in western society. 85% of all lung cancers are caused by a person's smoking habit or just by breathing in the second-hand smoke of others.
Lung Cancer - Screening
At this moment in time, there is no particularly useful single test that can be considered 100% reliable for the early detection of lung cancer. Unfortunately unless someone is undergoing a health screen for something completely unrelated, lung cancer is very often only discovered in the later stages of the disease when it is often too late to do anything but offer palliative treatment.
Lung Cancer - Symptoms
The most common indicators and symptoms of lung cancer include the following: Fatigue Shortness of breath and wheezing (dyspnoea) A cough that doesn't go away and gets worse over time Repeated problems with pneumonia or bronchitis Constant chest pain Coughing up blood (bloody sputum) (haemoptysis) Swelling of the neck and face Fever Loss of appetite and Weight loss (anorexia) Hoarse voice
Lung Cancer Treatment Options - Radiation
In many cases of lung cancer, surgery is not an option. This may be because of the advanced stage of the cancer, the location of the tumor or tumors, or because of the overall general health of the patient. In those cases, the oncologist may suggest radiation therapy to treat lung cancer. Even if surgery is an option, the doctor may suggest irradiation either before therapy to shrink the tumor or after surgery to destroy any remaining cancer cells.
Lung Cancer - Trends by Ethnicity, Sex and Race
In the USA and many other western countries, lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer death. Lung cancer has been found to be the leading cancer killer among Caucasians, African-Americans, Asians and Hispanic males.