This includes listening to your breathing and checking for any swollen lymph nodes or masses in the liver or stomach. Your doctor may perform a chest x-ray, which will detect most types of tumors in the lung. Although it can give you a rough picture of the size of the tumor, the x-ray may miss small masses. Your doctor may also order a CT scan, which uses computers to create 3-D images of the tumor.
The symptoms of lung cancer are often misdiagnosed. These symptoms could be caused by other conditions. For instance, a person with lung cancer may experience a headache, convulsions, or seizures. They may also suffer from numbness or weakness in an arm or leg, or develop a lump near the skin’s surface. But it’s important to note that these symptoms are only a few of the possible symptoms.
Another common symptom of lung cancer is coughing, which can keep people from sleeping, and may lead to fractured ribs. In addition, lung cancer patients may experience chest pain and difficulty breathing, as well as nausea, vomiting, and even bleeding. Coughs can also be dry or productive, or may include blood. If they are wet, the liquid sputum is considered sputum and should be disposed of immediately.
While the National Cancer Plan and the Cancer Services Collaborative have worked to improve the diagnosis process, the fact remains that many lung cancer patients are not diagnosed until they are in secondary care. This study suggests that screening for lung cancer is one of the areas where future research will have the greatest impact on survival rates. This is why the major funders of national research programmes must grasp this issue as early as possible. If they fail to do so, they may never get the treatment they need to live a longer and healthier life.
Asbestos is another dangerous substance that can lodge in lung tissue. It was widely used in building materials up until a few decades ago, but has now been banned as a new material. Although asbestos is no longer used, it is still present in the environment and increases your risk of lung cancer. Besides asbestos, other irritants that may increase your risk of lung cancer are air pollution from diesel engines and other sources, dust, and metals. Additionally, solvents found in household cleaners and personal care products can cause lung cancer. Finally, smoking has a genetic predisposition for the disease, and your family’s history can also be a risk factor.
Surgery for lung cancer will usually involve an incision in the chest or the side and removal of the affected lung. If the cancer has spread to nearby lymph nodes, a patient may undergo chemotherapy to reduce the chances of it coming back. A surgical procedure called a pneumonectomy, on the other hand, removes the entire lung. While surgery is not always the best option, it is a viable option for many lung cancer patients. This treatment option will remove the entire lung, though it will not necessarily be curative.
