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
Other symptoms that can now and then occur with lung cancer include repeated bouts of pneumonia, changes in the shape of the fingertips, and swollen or enlarged lymph nodes (glands) in the upper chest and lower neck.
Any and all of these symptoms may be caused by lung cancer or by a range of other medical conditions. That is, the presence of one or more of these symptoms does not automatically mean that you have lung cancer.
In addition, at the early stage of many cancers, there may be few symptoms or even no symptoms at all. Unfortunately, just because you have few if any obvious symptoms, it does not mean that you do not have cancer, and the cancer may be spreading in silence, making it difficult to control, treat or remove when the cancer is later discovered.
Early detection and diagnosis is very important for successful treatment of all cancers.
To help find the cause for these symptoms, a doctor will to begin with discuss and appraise the patient's medical history, whether they have ever smoked, any exposure they may have had to environmental and occupational substances, and if there is a family history of cancer.
Depending on how this evaluation goes, the doctor may then go on to carry out other tests to determine if there is any other cause to explain away the symptoms.
When our lungs are not able to operate effectively, for example, when they are affected by disease, then we experience shortness of breath. If the lungs are seriously compromised or damaged by disease or injury, then the lack of oxygen in the blood can cause not only brain damage, but also damage to other body organs, and even death. It's obvious our lungs are vitally important for us to live a normal, healthy, active life.
If the symptoms are caused by lung cancer, then the outlook for the person can be bleak for a variety of reasons. For a start, the lungs will operate less efficiently, and this will cause shortness of breath, fatigue, and similar symptoms. In more extreme cases, if enough of the lung tissue is damaged by the cancer, then more severe symptoms, or even death, may result.
Various other symptoms may occur if the cancer spreads to other parts of the body. That is, if there is metastasis. Lung cancer can spread to the liver, the brain, or the bones, with the following possible symptoms for each area:
Brain: headaches, seizures, nausea, vomiting, weakness
Liver: stomach pain (especially the right side), jaundice
Bones: bone pain
In addition to the symptoms of lung cancer, also be on the lookout for these or any other unusual or abnormal symptoms, and obtain medical advice as soon as possible.
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.