Lung Cancer

Lung Cancer

Lung cancer has been found to be the leading cancer killer in both men and women. More people die of lung cancer than of colon, breast, and prostate cancers combined. It has been estimated that 154,900 Americans will die from lung cancer in 2002; this is 28% of all cancer deaths. Lung cancer is an uncontrolled growth of abnormal cells in one or even both of the lungs. Normal lung tissue cells reproduce and develop into healthy lung tissue. The abnormal cells reproduce rapidly and do not ever grow into normal lung tissue. Clusters of cancerous cells, also known as tumors, form and disrupt the lung, which makes it hard for it to function correctly. Most lung cancers start in the lining of the bronchi, but it is also possible for it to start in other places such as, the trachea, bronchioles, or alveoli. Lung cancer often takes many years to develop. Once it does develop, the cancer cells can break away and spread to other parts of the body, which is why it is such a life-threatening disease. The majority of the people that are diagnosed with lung cancer are between the ages of 55 and 65 years old. If the lung cancer is found and treated with surgery early on, the survival rate is greater than if it is not found and treated early, however, only about 15% of lung cancer cases are found in an early stage, before it has spread to any other parts of the body.

There are two major types of lung cancer. They are non-small cell lung cancer and small cell lung cancer. Of the two, the most common is non-small cell. It accounts for about 80% of lung cancers. This type spreads to different parts of the body more slowly. Three types of non-small cell lung cancer are squamous cell carcinoma, ademocarcinoma, and large cell carcinoma. The other type, small cell lung cancer accounts for about 20% of all lung cancers and is usually caused by smoking. Although the cancer cells are small, they can multiply quickly and form large tumors. The tumors can spread to the lymph nodes and to other organs such as, the brain, liver, and bones. Different names for small cell lung cancer are oat cell cancer and small cell undifferentiated carcinoma.

There are a few causes of lung cancer. The number one cause of lung cancer by far is smoking. Smoking causes 87% of lung cancer cases. This is very tragic because these could have been easily been prevented. Cigarette smoke contains more than 4,000 different chemicals. Many of these chemicals are proven cancer-causing substances, also known as carcinogens. Smoking cigars or pipes can also increase a person's risk of getting lung cancer. The more a person smokes and the longer a person smokes, the greater that person's risk of getting lung cancer is. If a person stops smoking before lung cancer develops, it will decrease the risk of getting lung cancer each year as normal cells replace the abnormal cells and the lung cancer tissue will slowly return to normal. At any age, stopping smoking will lower the risk of getting lung cancer. It will also greatly reduce the risk of developing any other smoking-related diseases such as, heart disease, stroke, emphysema, and chronic bronchitis. There is also no evidence that smoking low tar cigarettes reduces the risk of lung cancer. The chemicals in tobacco smoke can also have an affect on the nonsmoker who breathes in the smoke. This is called "secondhand smoking" and it also increases a person's chance of developing lung cancer. Secondhand smoking accounts for approximately 3,000 lung cancer deaths and about 62,000 deaths from heart disease annually.

Another cause of lung cancer is radon. It is believed that a long-term exposure to this gas can cause lung cancer. It is considered to be the second leading cause of lung cancer in the United States, causing 12% of all lung cancer deaths. Radon has been found to be a problem in homes, schools, and workplaces. It gets into these places by coming up through the soil and entering though gaps and cracks in the foundation or insulation. It can also get in through pipes, drains, walls or any other openings. Radon has been found in every state in the United States and it has been estimated that 1 out of every 15 homes has levels at or above safe levels. Radon is a colorless, odorless gas, so the only way to tell if a person is being exposed to it is to measure the radon levels. If a person smokes and it exposed to radon, that person's risk of lung cancer is greatly increased.

Another cause of lung cancer is on-the-job exposure to carcinogens. Some examples of these carcinogens are asbestos, uranium, arsenic, and certain petroleum products. Again, when smoking is combined with the exposure to these carcinogens, the risk of lung cancer is greatly increased.

Lung cancer does not usually cause symptoms in its early stages and when symptoms do start to occur, by then the cancer has already developed and advanced. Some symptoms are a chronic cough, hoarseness, coughing up blood, weight loss and loss of appetite, shortness of breath, fever without a known reason, wheezing, repeated bouts of bronchitis or pneumonia, and chest pain. Early detection of lung cancer is very important in improving the chances of surviving it. Many different tests are