What Is Lung Cancer, and How Common Is It?

What Is Lung Cancer?

When an uncontrolled growth of abnormal cells begins to form within the lungs, it is commonly known as lung cancer. The lungs are made up of cells that cause either growth promotion, or growth suppression, and are programmed by nature to form in a certain shape, and to function in a certain way. However, when these cells become damaged by either internal or external changes within the body, the bodies programming usually begins to go wrong.

When growth promoting cells either lose their ability to promote growth, or the growth of these cells is accelerated, the growth suppression cells no longer pay attention to the bodies tumor suppression cells. This in turn causes the cells to multiply at an accelerated rate with all disregard to how nature programmed them to function correctly. As the cell acceleration begins to take place, the outer tissues of the lungs are also invaded by cancerous cells, as are other nearby tissues.

This change enables the cancer in the lungs to spread with relative ease to other organs within the body. Because of the relatively large size of the lungs, lung cancer usually continues to grow for many years without showing any common signs, or symptoms. When the lung cancer finally gets diagnosed, usually after a doctor has ordered a chest X-ray associated with another illness, the disease is found to be in its final stages, and in need of urgent treatment.

How Common Is Lung Cancer?

Cancer of the lungs is now one of the most common cancers diagnosed around the world, and accounts for over 200,000 new cases each year in the USA alone. Today's statistics show that lung cancer now affects both men and women equally, where as some years back the cases diagnosed in women were much less. This may be put down to the fact that more and more women are now smoking. Since 1987, lung cancer has also been found to be much more common in women than breast cancer.

Most people who get diagnosed with lung cancer are either active smokers, or ex-smokers who have now given up. But also, many other people who have never directly smoked get diagnosed with the disease too. In recent years, mortality rates have increased 150% in women, and 25% in men, with studies showing that estrogen, may even help the disease to grow, increasing the risk of it developing in women.

Taking Care of Lung Cancer Patient

If you want to care for someone with lung cancer, it is important that you are aware of the basic guidelines that need to be followed for dealing with a patient suffering from this condition.

If you have just learned about lung cancer in your near and dear one, it can be a shock.

You need to be aware of the various ways in which you can contribute to the comfort of the lung cancer patient. You should know how to make him at ease from his mental and physical trauma and recover from them too.


Some instructions that you can follow for taking care of a lung cancer patient are:

• For starters, jot down all your doubts regarding the condition of the patient and ask the health care provider without any sort of hesitation. There should be no fear in you regarding anything when querying the doctor about this. Even if the question is as trivial as how to entertain a lung cancer patient, it is valid under the circumstances. Important question such as the food options for cancer patient are a must.

• Try to gain as much information about a lung cancer patient as you can. You need to equip the patient you are looking after with all the information about dealing with his situation. This will help the patient to recover better provided you give him the necessary support and care.

• Learn all about the medication routine of the patient. If you do that, it will help to ensure speedy recovery as well as preventing pain to the extent possible. Cancer pain has been found to be related to non-compliance with the schedule of medication.

• Be ever willing to help the patient and also the affected family members if any. They should be helped in their tasks. This is important so that the patient does not get overwhelmed, fatigued or distracted in his treatment.

• You should not restrict yourself to entertaining the cancer patient but encourage him to talk more often. If he is able to express his feelings, it would go a long way in ensuring his speedy recovery. They need to unburden themselves from their stress, fear and depression by talking.

• If you can get internet access, try to get the lung cancer patient in touch with his friends online. It would surely help to make him feel better and bring a smile to his face.

Stage 4 Lung Cancer Life Expectancy and Treatments

Stage 4 lung cancer is the last stage of lung cancer that is also known as Metastatic Cancer.

This is the condition where the cancer cells have affected both lungs and other areas of the body, such as brain, bones, liver and so on. Unfortunately, 40 percent of people diagnosed with lung cancer are already in stage 4 when they are first diagnosed.

This is not uncommon as earlier stages often misidentified as other less serious health problems. Thanks to medical improvements, a diagnosis of stage 4 lung cancer does not mean that they cannot prolong their life.

The life expectancy of the patient can be improved through certain treatments so the patients can live longer, generally about 7 to 12 months since they are diagnosed, although the cancer itself is incurable. Some people are even able to survive for years, even up to 7 years.

The life expectancy of stage 4 lung cancer therefore varies, depending on many factors, including the physical and mental condition of the patient, the age, the sex, and the current condition of the cancer itself, whether it has developed further or not. Normally, women have higher survival rate than men.

In this stage, surgery is no longer possible and chemotherapy is the option to reduce the size of the tumor, slow its growth, terminate the most cancerous cells, improve the symptoms and quality of life and more importantly, prolong the life of the patients.

Radiation is often mixed with the chemotherapy. Both methods often cause severe side effects such as abdominal pain, memory loss, bone pain, kidney problems, impotence and many others. In addition, there are other treatments that can help the patient prolong their life, which are target drug treatment and the patient's contribution in clinical experiment.

Both methods basically work by targeting the patient's cancer characteristics and treating it.

The patients will not experience severe side effects as with chemotherapy and radiation. The medical experiment alone is proven to be successful in improving the survival rate of the patients, mainly because patients engaging in the experiment get all the focus on themselves and if there is a new finding to help improve the survival rate, it will be tested on them.

In addition to all the medical treatments above, sometimes patients also look into alternative treatments, although from medical point of view, those treatments do not do the stage 4 lung cancer anything. The treatments include acupuncture, massage therapy, certain diet, natural substances such as baking soda and even taking kerosene as well as certain herbal remedies.

They might work in reducing the symptoms of the cancer but are unlikely to cure the cancer itself, but are always worth investigating, as some have a very good history of helping. The outcome of those alternative treatments is always better if the cancer is still in early stages.

By knowing the life expectancy and treatments of stage 4 lung cancer, patients can be more prepared for what they will be going through and their loved ones are also ready to support them throughout the whole process.

Effects of Lung Cancer - What Are They?

Effects of Lung Cancer have been devastating families for years, for both the one who has been diagnosed with lung cancer and their loved ones. This destructive cancer effects the families by the pain it causes them from watching the once healthy vivacious person deteriorate.

The Effects of Lung Cancer on the sick is pain, and loss of health and sometimes life. This deadly disease has grown to claim more lives than the other cancers combined. However, for being a cancer with such a high death claim, it is slow in the beginning stages. Then the effects of this cancer will grow rapidly as the disease will spread and invade other parts of the body.

If one will just let this disease go without any treatment, this horrible cancer will gradually infect the bones and yes the brain. Effects of lung cancer at the beginning stages are a feeling of heaviness in the chest. Also a cough that sticks around regardless of what you take to try to rid yourself of it. This cancer has been known to both spread like wild fire in the body, or just be very slow-growing and spreading.

However doctors have been treating it successfully, but it must be caught early enough. Some people will not experience much if any effects of lung cancer at the start. While other people diagnosed with this type of cancer will suffer horribly from the lung cancer effects on their body and health.

Let us not forget the effects of the treatments for this specific cancer which, yes are effective in stopping this disease, at the same time have side effects that can make the patient miserable, so say the least.


Effects of Lung Cancer List

• Shortness of breath
• Persistent cough
• Heavy feeling in chest
• Chest pain or ache
• Unexplained pain in other areas (possibly from cancer spreading)
• Blood coughed up (this is known as an early warning sign and the lung cancer may yet be curable.)
• Wheezing during breathing
• Hoarseness
• Chronic pneumonia and/or bronchial infections
• Extreme Fatigue
• Weight loss

The majority of all of these cancer cases diagnosed come from tobacco smoke, both first and second-hand.

This includes both cigarette and cigar smoking. My personal advice is if you smoke, STOP. If my father would have stopped smoking years ago when they first found the spot on his lungs, he would still be alive today.

Do this to extend your life for yourself and mostly for your family. Sure it will be tough, but so what, the best things in life are worked for and are tough to get to. The payoff in the end is worth that small price of a little discomfort.

Your chances are a lot better, and in fact you have a chance if you quit. Well, you know what lies ahead of you if you don't. You will be able to live.

Diet for Lung Cancer Patient

Lung cancer accounts for a number of cancer deaths in a year. Patients taking chemotherapy treatment usually lose their appetite, however, at this time, the body requires additional strength to heal and restore the lost energy. Thus, getting appropriate nutrition is essential. A lung cancer patient can incorporate some of the foods mentioned below in his/her diet.

Foods rich in Antioxidant Chemicals

1. Incorporation of fruits and vegetables in a lung cancer patient's diet is essential to boost his immune system. Fruits and vegetables are rich in antioxidants, which enhances production of healthy cells by reducing free radicals (responsible for damaged cells) from our body.

2. Regular diet of an individual suffering from cancer should include garlic, onions, tomatoes, soy, broccoli, cauliflower and cabbage. Onion and garlic lower the production of cancer-causing chemicals.

3. Green tea contains a number of antioxidant chemicals that are 500 times more potent than vitamin C sources. Thus, lung cancer patients should consume two cups of green tea in a day.

4. An antioxidant called lycopene found in tomatoes, watermelon and papaya also prevent cancer from getting worse.

5. Sulforaphane found in green and leafy vegetables, such as lettuce and cabbage is an antioxidant which increases phase II enzymes production. These enzymes are responsible for elimination of carcinogens from cells.

Healthy Fats

1. Cancer patients require as much fats as normal people do. However, their bodies find it hard to absorb saturated (unhealthy) fat. Diet of lung cancer patients should include items which have healthy fats. Sources of healthy fats help in the regulation of nervous system and also maintain blood pressure, heart rate, blood vessel constriction and prevent blood clotting.

2. Healthy fats' sources include olive oil, flaxseed oil and essential fatty acids such as Omega-3. Omega-3 fatty acids can be found in salmon, shrimp, nuts (particularly walnuts) and tofu. Supplements of omega-3 in the form of pills can also be taken. However, one should ask his/her oncologist to make sure it is safe.

3. Essential fatty acids limit the growth of cancerous cells. Thus, one should choose wisely before incorporating any fatty item in his/her diet.

Other than consumption of healthy foods and getting the proper nutrients, taking meals on time is also important to fight lung cancer. A well-balanced diet can control the spread of lung cancer and help the body recover from the damage caused. One should consult an oncologist before starting any diet or exercise.