Contents:
- Medical Video: 5 common signs of lung cancer
- Early symptoms of lung cancer
- Symptoms of lung cancer if it spreads to other organs
- Why are smokers more at risk of lung cancer?
- Tips to overcome the symptoms of lung cancer
Medical Video: 5 common signs of lung cancer
Lung cancer is a condition in which cells grow uncontrollably in the lungs. Lung cancer is one of the most common types of cancer. This condition is mostly owned by smokers, both active and passive.
At the initial stage, there are no symptoms or signs that refer to lung cancer, so many patients do not get an early diagnosis. As a result, when detected, the cancer has spread and it's too late to be treated. Therefore, it is important to recognize the symptoms of lung cancer so that the treatment can be better and more effective.
Early symptoms of lung cancer
- Cough that doesn't stop and even gets worse
- Cough with bloody mucus or phlegm
- Chest pain that gets worse when coughing, laughing, or taking deep breaths
- Shortness of breath or short breath and wheezing
- Feel tired or weak
- Loss of appetite so that weight loss
- Lung infections, such as bronchitis and pneumonia, which continue to reappear.
- Hoarseness
Symptoms of lung cancer if it spreads to other organs
If it has spread to the surrounding organs, lung cancer can cause:
- Bone pain (such as pain in the back or hip).
- Nervous system changes (such as headaches, hands or feet feel weak or dizzy, dizzy, or seizures) if the cancer spreads to the brain or spinal cord.
- Eyes and skin turn yellow (jaundice) if the cancer spreads to the liver.
- Lumps near the surface of the body, because cancer spreads to the skin or lymph nodes (a collection of immune system cells), such as in the neck or above the collarbone.
- Tumors at the top of the lungs can affect the facial nerves, causing one eyelid to droop, small pupils, or less sweat on one side of the face.
Why are smokers more at risk of lung cancer?
Not all smokers have lung cancer, and not everyone who has lung cancer is a smoker. However, smoking is the main trigger factor that causes lung cancer. The more you smoke and the longer you smoke, the greater your risk of lung cancer.
Not only active smokers, passive smokers also have lung cancer. According to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), cigarette smoke is responsible for about 7,300 deaths from lung cancer every year in the United States. Tobacco products contain more than 7,000 chemicals, and at least 70 are known to cause cancer.
When you breathe in cigarette smoke, this mixture of chemicals is sent directly to your lungs, this is where the damage to your lungs begins. At first, this damage can be repaired by the body. But this continuous attack and continuation of smoking causes damage to the lung tissue to continue to grow and is difficult to deal with. This damage causes the cells to react abnormally until the cancer cells finally appear.
Former smokers are still at risk of developing lung cancer, but quitting smoking can reduce that risk significantly. Within 10 years after quitting smoking, the risk of dying from lung cancer fell by half.
Tips to overcome the symptoms of lung cancer
If you have some of these symptoms that make you uncomfortable, immediately check with your doctor. The sooner you get a diagnosis, the faster you get the right treatment.
If you have been diagnosed with lung cancer by a doctor, the main step to take is to get rid of cigarettes from your life. Stop smoking immediately. If you have lung cancer because you are passive smokers, you should talk to people who smoke and tell them to stop for you and them too.
In addition, start a healthy lifestyle. Actually there is no need to wait for old or sick to do a healthy lifestyle. Do it as soon as possible. Starting exercise and a healthy diet will always be the foundation for a healthy body.
Try to exercise as much as you can, but don't overdo it. Learning how to control your breathing during exercise is important for patients with lung cancer.
If you are a smoker, protecting yourself with health insurance is a step that is not less important, to ensure the early symptoms of lung cancer can be immediately handled by the medical team, without the need to delay due to financial limitations. Late treatment of cancer, especially if the cancer has spread to other parts, has a lower cure rate.
