Lung Cancer
The lungs are apart of the respiratory system and are composed of the left and right lung. These organs can be described as sponge-like and cone shaped. The right lung is slightly bigger than the left lung.The lungs take in oxygen for our body as we breathe in; oxygen is what cells need to live and to carry out their normal functions. When we breathe out, the lungs get rid of carbon dioxide, which is a waste product of the body’s cells.
Two Major Types of Lung Cancer
Non-small cell lung cancer and Small cell lung cancer
Non-small cell type is more common than small cell types. Generally grows and spreads more slowly.
Are you at risk for lung cancer?
Risk Factors
Cigarettes
Smoking cigarettes is the most common cause of lungcancer. Tobacco containscarcinogens, which are harmful substances, that damage cells in the lungs. Then the damaged cells may become cancerous. A person who stops smoking greatly reduces the risk for lung cancer.
Warning: The likelihood that a smoker will develop lung cancer is affected by the age at which smoking began, how long the person has smoked, the number of cigarettes smoked per day, and how deeply the smoker inhales.
Cigars and Pipes
Cigar and pipe smokers have a higher risk of lung cancer than nonsmokers. Even cigar and pipe smokers who do not inhale are at increased risk for lung, mouth, and other types of cancer.
The risk of developing lung cancer is affected by the number of years a person smokes, the number of pipes or cigars smoked per day, and how deeply the person inhales.
Environmental Tobacco Smoke (ETS)
Exposure to ETS, second-hand smoke, is called involuntary passive smoking. The chance of developing lung cancer is increased by exposure to environmental tobacco smoke.
Radon
An invisible, odorless, and tasteless radioactive gas that occurs naturally in soil and rocks. People who work in mines may be exposed to radon. Radon is also found in houses in some parts of the country.
Smoking increases the risk of lung cancer even more for those who are already at risk because of exposure to radon.
Asbestos
A group of minerals that make up fibers and are used in certain industries (shipbuilding, brake repair, insulation work, and asbestos mining).
Asbestos fibers tend to break easily into particles that float in the air and stick to clothes. The particles can lodge in the lungs, damaging cells and increasing the risk for lung cancer.
Workers who have been exposed to asbestos have a 3 to 4 times greater risk of developing cancer than workers who have not been exposed. The risk is even higher among workers who smoke.
Pollution
There is a link between lung cancer and exposure to certain air pollutants like by-products of the combustion of diesel and other fossil fuels. The relationship between pollution and lung cancer has not yet been clearly defined and more research is still being done.
Lung Diseases
Lung cancer tends to develop in areas of the lung that are scarred from Tuberculosis (TB).
TB and other lung diseases particular increase a person’s chance of developing lung cancer.
Medical History
A person who has had a history of lung cancer once is more likely to develop a second lung cancer when compared with a person who has never had lung cancer. Quitting smoking after lung cancer is diagnosed may prevent the development of a second lung cancer.
