Lung Cancer

About Lung Cancer

Lungs are the two spongy organs in the chest which are meant for breathing and gas exchange. The cancer developing in the lungs is known as lung cancer. It is the leading cause of death worldwide.

Risk Factors are: Smoking. The risk of lung cancer increases with the number of cigarettes or bidis and number of years of smoking. Similarly the risk decreases after quitting smoking. Even non smokers can get lung cancers due to certain environmental factors like Pollution.

What are the symptoms of Lung Cancer?

Lung Cancer usually causes symptoms when the disease is advanced. As it is most of the times symptomless in early stages, it is difficult to catch these cancers early.

The common symptoms can be one of the following:

• Persistent cough that is not subsiding even after treatment
• Blood in sputum
• Shortness of breath
• Hoarseness of voice
• Chest pain
• Weight loss

How is it diagnosed?

When any of the above symptoms occur, do consult your doctor who may prescribe the following tests:

• Imaging: Chest X-ray which can show a nodule in the lung. This is usually followed by CT scan which remains the main investigation. It can detect even the smallest of the nodules which might not be visible on Chest X ray. Low Dose CT is done for screening the asymptomatic high risk individuals like chronic smokers or who have quit smoking after prolonged periods.
• Biopsy to confirm the diagnosis which is usually done
1. Bronchoscopy
2. under CT guidance: from the main mass or Lymphnodes
3. Mediastinoscopy for sampling of lymphnodes
• PET scan is done to ascertain the extent of disease.
• Endoscopies: Direct Laryngoscopy, Bronchoscopy, nasopharyngoscopy
• Imaging like: MRI/CT/PET-CT

How the disease is treated?

The treatment is devised according to general health of the patient, type, location and stage of the tumors. It involves

Surgery: Whenever surgery is feasible it should be done. It involves removal of a part or total lung.

• Wedge Resection: a small lung tissue is removed along with the tumor
• Segmental resection: a larger portion is removed but not the whole lobe
• Lobectomy: When an entire lung lobe is removed
• Pneumonectomy: when the entire lung is removed.

Surgery involves removal of local nodes also. Surgery may sometimes be preceded by the chemotherapy in case of large tumors so as to shrink the tumor size. Radiotherapy or chemotherapy is also given after the surgery.

Radiotherapy: Some patients would be requiring radiotherapy after surgery. Radiotherapy along with chemotherapy may be primary mode of treatment in some cancers. It may be required in some cases for pain management.

Chemotherapy: Chemotherapy is usually given with radiotherapy. In some cases it is given before or after radiotherapy. Sometimes it may be used preoperatively to decrease the size of the tumors.

Targeted Therapy and Immunotherapy: Targeted therapy is treatment specifically meant to attacks specifics targets on tumor cells, thus leading to minimal harm to normal cells. Immunotherapy is meant to modulate the immune e system to increase cancer cell kill. Immunotherapy is usually reserved for advanced spread out tumors.

Tags: Lung Cancer , symptoms of Lung Cancer