About lung cancer

The common fact about lung cancer, just like all cancers is that it is a defecti
ve cell disease. The cells multiply abnormally igniting the growth of tumors. No
rmally, the body has the ability to control cell growth. This ensures that cells
are produced only when required and mainly to replace the worn out ones. This h
owever does not happen many of the times. A person may suffer from an uncontroll
ed cell production due to a defect in the system. When this happens in the lungs
, a condition known as lung cancer is formed. Another important fact about lung
cancer is that it comes in two types: malignant and benign tumors. Malignant can
cers are more dangers because they are progressive. They are more aggressive as
compared to begnin tumors. They therefore have the ability to invade other body
cells in either the lymph or bloodstream. This spread is referred to as metastas
is. This makes it hard to control.
Begnin tumors on the other hand are more manageable. They can be removed and the
y are not as progressive as the malignant tumors. This ensures that they do not
spread all over the body. Knowing the details about lung cancer is of essence. T
his helps people make the right decisions about their health. Most of the times,
lung cancer registers no symptoms. People can live with it for many years witho
ut knowing. It only gets discovered if they run a CT scan or a chest X-ray. Howe
ver, it exhibits the following symptoms in other people. These include weight lo
ss, short breath, wheezing, chest pain, and coughing which at times is bloody. W
hen cancer affects the nerves, people may suffer shoulder pains. The vocal cords
may also get paralyzed and this causes people to loose their voice. Swallowing
may become difficult when the esophagus gets infected.
Metastasis cancer, which refers to full-blown cancer that affects bones, may be
exhibited through deep pain in bone areas. If the brain has been affected, peopl
e may suffer headaches, seizures and their vision becomes blurred. They may also
go numb. Knowing about lung cancer types is important. The two known types are
the Small Cell Lung Carcinoma (SCLC) and Non-Small Cell Lung Carcinoma (NSCLC).
The treatment of these cancers differs since they exhibit some differences. The
SCLC is treated best through radiation and chemotherapy. The NSCLC on the other
hand responds well to surgery. Lung cancer is caused by smoking. People who smok
e for a better part of their life risk suffering from it.
An interesting fact is that the more cigarettes people smoke the more susceptibl
e they are to lung cancer. Tobacco is known to contain thousands of chemicals, w
hich are believed to trigger cancer in the body. These compounds are referred to
as carcinogens. Lung cancer can also be caused by genetic factors. Other relate
d causes include air pollution, radon gas, and asbestos. To know about lung canc
er in the system, a CT scan is carried out. A biopsy is carried out on the perso
n and the results confirm if they have lung cancer. Treating lung cancer depends
on factors such as its stage, its type, as well as the patients condition at the
time of diagnosis. The major treatments include radiotherapy, surgery, and chem
otherapy.