By now, most of us know that the number one thing to avoid if you don’t want to get lung cancer are cigarettes. Unfortunately, even if you’re not a smoker, you’re at risk of developing lung cancer.
The other causes start with secondhand smoke but also include exposing yourself to various exhaust fumes and natural gasses, as well as asbestos at work or from old materials in your home.
For this very reason, it is crucial that you can recognize the warning signs of lung cancer and give yourself the best chance possible at battling this terrible disease.
How to Recognize Early Lung Cancer Symptoms
In the beginning, this type of cancer can be difficult to spot, and most people often don’t even know that they have it. However, according to the American Cancer Society, [1] the following symptoms should be a cause for concern:
Chronic cough: If you find yourself coughing almost all the time, maybe it is best to speak to your doctor about getting your lungs checked for lung cancer.
A Changing Cough: If you have experienced some allergies that caused coughing, but notice that the way you cough could be an alarming sign. Consult your doctor if your cough becomes painful or contains bloody phlegm.
Breathing Changes: The tumor might be causing your difficulty of breathing by blocking an airway or triggering the fluid in your lungs.
Lung infections: If you are experiencing frequent infections on your lungs, you should go and have your lungs scanned, as this is one of the most significant signs of lung cancer.
Chest Pain: Shoulder, chest or back pain could also be an indicator of lung cancer. You should especially pay attention if your laugh or cough make the pain worse.
Weight loss: If you are losing your weight without a proper explanation, you should also see your doctor and get a tumor marker.
How Do You Treat Lung Cancer
A doctor will usually consider multiple factors when coming up with a treatment plan. For instance, when the lung cancer was diagnosed, which stage is it in, has it spread past the lungs, the patient’s general health, as well as a patient’s preferences. If you are diagnosed with cancer, according to WebMD [2] you will most likely start one of these treatment options:
Surgery: Doctors manually extract the tumor out of your body.
Chemotherapy: You take a mix of medication intravenously or by swallowing a pill which helps kill the tumor cells.
Radiation: Over multiple sessions, high-energy rays destroy cancer cells.
Radio-frequency ablation: Using a thin needle inserted into the tumor, doctors kill cancer cells with heat generated by an electric current.
Targeted therapy: Targeted therapies aim to attack particular cancer cell parts or a tumor with a single medication or a combination of medications.
Cancer is not a disease that anyone should underestimate. Luckily, scientists and doctors are working together and trying to come up with new ways of fighting lung cancer.
If you have any of the symptoms listed above, you should see your doctor immediately. The more you wait, the lower your chances for survival are going to be.
If you want to find out more about lung tumor, start researching today.
[1] https://www.cancer.org/cancer/lung-cancer/prevention-and-early-detection/signs-and-symptoms.html [2] https://www.webmd.com/lung-cancer/lung-cancer-treatment#1