LUNG CANCER
Lung cancer is one of the most commonly diagnosed cancers. It develops when abnormalities occur in either the lungs or the bronchi (the air tubes leading to the lungs).
People who smoke tend to be at greater risk for the disease, and studies have shown that female smokers may be more likely to develop lung cancer than male smokers. But lung cancer can also occur in people who have never smoked.
Types of lung cancer
There are two main types of lung cancer, non-small cell lung cancer and small cell lung cancer. Non-small cell lung cancer is more common.
-
Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer (NCSLC): find out about Adenocarcinoma and squamous cell carcinoma, which are the two most common subtypes of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC).
-
Small Cell Lung Cancer (SCLC): accounting for around 13 percent of lung cancers, small cell lung cancer (SCLC) begins in the cells surrounding the bronchi. Learn more about this less common type.
-
Pulmonary Neuroendocrine Tumors
Risk factor for lung cancer
Smoking, or exposure to tobacco products in any form, is the major risk factor for lung cancer. Nonsmokers who breathe the smoke of others, often called secondhand smoke, are also at increased risk for lung cancer.
Other risk factors include exposure to asbestos or radon. These toxic substances can cause damage to the lungs, leading to cancer.
Stages for lung cancer
-
Stage I: The cancer developed in and is confined to one lung.
-
Stages II and III: The cancer developed in one lung but has spread to nearby chest structures or lymph glands.
-
Stage IV: The cancer has spread from one lung to the other or to another organ like the bones, brain, liver, or adrenal gland (a hormone-releasing organ that sits on top of the kidney).
Symptoms for lung cancer
You may not notice any symptoms of lung cancer; many people don’t. Often the first sign of the disease is an abnormal spot that appears on a chest x-ray or a CT scan for another medical condition.
Some of the symptoms include: coughing, shortness of breath, chest pain, loss of appetite, coughing up phlegm, mucus, or blood and fatigue.
Diagnosis for lung cancer
Lung cancer physicians include thoracic surgeons, medical oncologists, radiation oncologists, radiologists, and pathologists.
The first step is for your doctor to get a tissue sample using one of several biopsy methods. Then a pathologist — a type of doctor who specializes in diagnosing disease —who focuses on lung cancer studies the tissue under a microscope to determine whether you have lung cancer and, if so, what type.
Treatment for lung cancer
Because small cell lung cancer tends to grow and spread quickly, the primary treatment is chemotherapy. Treatment for non-small cell lung cancer, on the other hand, usually involves surgery.