LUNG CANCER

LUNG CANCER
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INTRODUCTION
This is a type of cancer that begins in the lungs. Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer death. Bates (2012) reported that it is the biggest cancer killer in the U.K. The peak occurrence of lung cancer is at age 70-79 for both men and women. The incidence rates of lung cancer vary correlating with habits of smoking cigarettes prevalent prior to 10 years at most (Yong Yao, 2005) The primary cause of this disease is long time cigarette smoking (>85%) (PubMed Heath, 2011) followed closely by alcohol consumption. Second chain smokers can also be affected with the disease since they come into contact with most of the smoke exhaled by smokers. The people who are mostly affected are elderly men and women due to long-term smoking. There are risk factors that may increase a people’s chances of developing this disease and these include; effects of past cancer treatment, exposure to asbestos, radon gas and genetic risks (PubMed Health, 2011). In developing countries, cooking using stoves and fire has been associated with increase of cancer risk (Yong Yao, 2005)
The risk of developing lung cancer increases with the duration of tobacco smoking and also the number of cigarettes smoked. There are two types of cancers i.e. the non small cell lung cancer and small cell lung cancer and they are diagnosed depending on how the cells are seen under a microscope (National Cancer Institute, 2012). Non-small cell lung cancer is a term used for a group of cancers originating from the lung. It includes adenocarcinoma, squamous cell carcinoma, and large cell carcinoma (Bryan Jared, n.d.).
Non-small cell lung cancer accounts to over 80% of all lung cancer thus it is the most dangerous of all cancers manifesting itself in histology, prognosis, pathogenesis and it responds to treatments that are manufactured against lung cancer(WebMD Medical, 2010).
Common complications of lung cancer
Lung cancer complications are known to cause a variety of problems that include breathing and heart problems. Recurrent infections e.g. pneumonia are known to occur due to complications related to lung cancer. Lung cancer is classified in stages that are determined by the size of the cancer and how far it has spread within the lung, to nearby tissues, or to other organs” (WebMD Medical, August 26, 2010)
The most common complications caused by lung cancer include shortness of breath if cancer grows and blocks the airways. Shortness of breath can also be caused by accumulation of fluid around the lungs thus lungs cannot fully expand when one is breathing in. In the airway, blood can be formed by lung cancer thus when coughing one coughs out blood. This is called hemoptysis which may become severe.
Lung cancer can advance and spread to the lining of the lung or to other areas of the body like the bones therefore causing pain. If no treatment is given within a certain period of time, lung cancer can spread to other parts of the body most commonly the brain, bones, liver and adrenal glands. This spreading cancer (metastasis) causes pain, nausea, headache and other minor symptoms. Fluid can also accumulate in the pleural space due to lung cancer and this is called pleural effusion which in turn causes shortness of breath (PubMed Health, 2011). There are treatments that drain the fluid from the chest.
Death is the final complication that occurs due to lung cancer and sadly very few people survive after being diagnosed with cancer. Usually the result of the disease is fatal but if diagnosed earlier, survival rates are high. These problems caused by lung cancer can be treated by various types of treatment including radiation therapy, medications and chemotherapy.
Prognosis
Prognosis refers to the chance that it can be cured or that life can be prolonged. Lung cancer is diagnosed when it advances to the metastatic stage and adenocarcinoma( a type of non small lung cancer) being the most frequent histologic type(WebMD Medical, 2010) . Early diagnosis of lung cancer before it spreads to other organs like the lymph nodes significantly increase the survival rates of patients by at least 5% before it reaches the advanced stage (PubMed Health, 2011). However there are many factors affecting the early diagnosis which incl...