Lung cancer

Description of lung cancer

Cancer occurs, when the body's cells start to randomly share. The result is a mass of tissue, called a growth or tumor. The term cancer refers to malignant Tumors, that can invade nearby tissues and spread to other parts of the body.

Lung cancer is a disease, in which cancer cells grow in the lungs. There are two types of lung cancer:

• Non-small cell lung cancer – usually, It grows and spreads more slowly (a common form of lung cancer);
• Small cell lung cancer – usually, It is growing faster, and often spreads to other parts of the body.

Causes Lung Cancer

Causes, that may cause damage to cells in the lungs and lung cancer:

• Inhaling cigarette smoke, cigar or pipe;
• Exposure to asbestos (mineral) or radon (radioactive gas).

Risk factors for lung cancer

Factors, which increases the risk of lung cancer:

• Smoking;
• Chewing tobacco;
• Exposure to tobacco smoke;
• Exposure to asbestos or radon;
• The presence of lung disease, such as tuberculosis;
• Family or personal history of lung cancer;
• Effects of certain air pollutants;
• Exposure to coal dust;
• Radiation therapy, which is used to treat other types of cancer;
• HIV infection.

Symptoms of Lung Cancer

Симптомы рака легких могут включать:

• Cough, which does not pass and deteriorates over time;
• Persistent chest pain;
• Coughing up blood;
• Breathlessness, wheezing, or hoarseness;
• Frequent pneumonia or bronchitis;
• Swelling of the face and neck;
• Loss of appetite or weight loss;
• Fatigue.

Diagnosis of Lung Cancer

The doctor will ask about your symptoms and medical history, and perform a physical examination. He also asked about the following:

• Do you smoke and how long?
• If you contact you with harmful substances?
• It was lung cancer in the family or with relatives?

Tests may include:

• Chest X-ray – test, which uses X-rays, to take a picture of structures inside the body;
• Cytology mokrotы – test, which analyzes a sample of mucus from the lungs;
• Spiral computed tomography – a special type of X-ray light;
• Biopsy legkih – removal of a sample of lung tissue to test for cancer cells.

Other diagnostic methods include:

• PET – pictures are taken with a small amount of a radioactive substance, which is introduced into the organism;
• PET / CT – test, that combines PET and computed tomography (type of X-ray, which uses computer, to make pictures of organs inside the body);
• A bone scan – test, that defines the area to increase or decrease the activity of bone cells.

Treatment of Lung Cancer

After lung cancer detection survey is conducted, allowing to determine the extent and scope of cancer. The goal of treatment is to eliminate the cancer and / or control of the symptoms of the disease.

Operation lung cancer

Операция заключается в удалении опухоли и близлежащих тканей. Иногда также должны быть удалены лимфатические узлы. Type of surgery depends on the location of the tumor:

• Segmental or wedge resection – removal of only a small part of the lungs;
• Lobectomy – removal of the entire lobe of the lung;
• Pneumonectomy – removal of the entire lung.

Radiation therapy for lung cancer

Radiation therapy – Use of radiation, allowing you to kill cancer cells and shrink tumors. The procedure can also be used to alleviate symptoms, such as shortness of breath. For the treatment of lung cancer is commonly used external irradiation, wherein the radiation is directed at the tumor from a source outside the body.

Chemotherapy for lung cancer

Chemotherapy – the use of drugs to kill cancer cells. Preparations for the chemotherapy may be given in various forms: tablets, injection, the introduction of a catheter. The drugs enter the bloodstream and spread throughout the body, killing mostly cancer, and also some healthy cells.

New Treatments For Lung Cancer

Researchers continue to study ways to treat lung cancer. The most promising methods of treatment are as follows:

• Fotodinamicheskaya therapy – type of laser therapy. The chemical injected into the bloodstream, whereupon it is absorbed by cells in the body. Because normal cells reagent appears fairly quickly, but it accumulates in cancer cells. Exposure to the laser activates the substance, and it kills cancer cells. This method of treatment can also be used to reduce the symptoms of lung cancer.
• Krioxirurgija – treatment, in which cancer tissue frozen and destroyed

Другие перспективные методы лечения включают в себя:

• Target Therapy – It includes the use of drugs or substances, affecting certain molecules in cancer cells;
• Immunotherapy – It includes the use of drugs or substances, produced by the body, that allows you to increase or restore the body's natural defenses against cancer

If you are diagnosed with lung cancer, Follow your doctor's instructions.

Prevention of Lung Cancer

To reduce the risk of developing lung cancer:

• Do not start smoking. If you smoke, try to quit;
• Avoid concentrations of smokers;
• Check your home for radon and asbestos. It is necessary to remove these substances from the house;
• Do not work in places where asbestos.

It is recommended that screening for lung cancer using CT, If you are a smoker (or former smoker), aged 55-74 years, or if you are a heavy smoker (eg, smokes one pack of cigarettes per day for 30 years).