A CT scan. That is what it is about, prevention, the action most recommended by doctors around the world when it comes to talking about lung cancer.
And how detecting the disease early can help save lives.
Lung cancer is a type of cancer that begins in the lungs, two spongy organs located in the chest that take in oxygen when you breathe in and release carbon dioxide when you breathe out.
It is the leading cause of cancer death worldwide.
People who smoke are at the highest risk of developing lung cancer, although this type of cancer can also occur in people who have never smoked.
This increases with the number of cigarettes and the length of time the smoker.
If you quit smoking, even after you’ve smoked for many years, you can significantly lower your chances of getting lung cancer.
Tobacco consumption and exposure to smoke are one of the main causes of cancer, cardiovascular and respiratory diseases, causing more than 8 million deaths worldwide each year, according to the WHO. Of this total, as reported by the organization, more than 7 million are due to direct consumption and around 1.2 million are the result of non-smokers’ exposure to secondhand smoke.
Physicians around the world are pushing harder and harder for that to happen.
Lung cancer kills more than 127,000 people in the US each year.
The number of victims has decreased in recent years thanks to declining smoking rates and new treatments.
The American Lung Association stated that the five-year survival rate when lung cancer is detected early is about 60%, compared with about 7% if it is detected after the disease has spread.
According to a 2022 report from the American Lung Association, only 6% of eligible people are screened, compared to more than 60% of eligible people for breast and colorectal cancer.
Clinicians have debated whether it is worth the risk of false positives and invasive procedures resulting from CT lung scanning. Some eligible people have said they didn’t know the test existed, or worse: they’d rather not know the results.
It’s just that a diagnosis of lung cancer was long considered a death sentence.
The scientific community is right now pushing for awareness in lung cancer screening as there are newer treatments that have changed the landscape of the disease.
Lung cancer generally produces no signs or symptoms in its early stages.
The signs and symptoms of lung cancer usually appear when the disease is advanced.
Signs and symptoms may be:
A recent cough that won’t go away
- Coughing up blood, even small amounts
- Shortness of breath
- Chest pain
- Hoarseness
- weight loss without trying
- Bone-ache
- Headache
Risk factor’s:
There are several factors that can increase the risk of lung cancer.
smoking
Exposure to smoke from other smokers.
Previous radiotherapy.
Exposure to radon gas.
Exposure to asbestos and other carcinogenic substances.
Family history of lung cancer.