Lung Cancer
Lung cancer is a very serious matter and is definitely something to be aware of. It is the leading cause of cancer-related death in both men and women. Yes, it has now surpassed breast cancer for deaths of women. In 2004, 108,355 men and 87,897 women were diagnosed with lung cancer, and of these 89,575 of the men and 68,431 of the women died from lung cancer (mayoclinic.com). Cancer as a whole is any unusual growth where the cells are multiplying at an abnormal rate. When the growths bag big enough they are called tumors. The cancer can spread to any other part of the body using the lymphatic system or also through the blood stream. If the cancer starts in some fraction of the body and spreads to the lungs it is not actually lung cancer. Lung cancer must start in the lung tissue if it is to be consider actual lung cancer. Tumors in the lungs, or anywhere for that matter, are abominable because the take up oxygen and nutrients that the person needs. Lung cancer has several causes. One of the biggest causes of lung cancer is smoking and secondhand smoking, but there are other causes that can be found at a workplace or even in some homes. There are a lot of different ways to diagnose lung cancer. Biopsy, bronchoscopy, and a mediastinoscopy would be examples of what doctors use to diagnose lung cancer. There is a lot doctors can do to help treat lung cancer has it is the most expensive cancer to treat. In 2004, about 9.6 billion dollars was used(“mayoclinic.com”). Most of the time a biopsy is used to diagnose lung cancer, but there are also some different methods a doctor can do to determine what type and how severe the cancer is. The doctor can preform a bronchoscopy. They use a flexible tube to look into the lungs and take out a sample. They go in through the nose or the mouth to collect into the lungs. A similar method is mediastinoscopy, which is heavenly much the same thing only the tube goes through a small incision in the neck. The patient would be put under anesthesia for this. There can be a lot of test done because lung cancer is a very serious condition.
Doctors also do all these test and diagnoses to determine the best treatment for the patient. The type and stage of the tumor determine the treatment doctors will use. They also look into the patients past medical record. One method to treat lung cancer is with surgery. Surgery can remove or at least stop the spread of the cancer. There are several different types of surgery that can be ragged. There is the what they call the wedge resection. This is just removing the cancerous fragment of the lung. Another surgery is lobotomy. With this draw they bewitch an entire lobe of one lung. This is a big deal because there are only five lobes between the two lungs, but this is still the most common form of surgery for lung cancer. Even more of a big deal is pneumonectomy. This is removing not just one lobe but the entire lung. People for the most part try to avoid this as noteworthy has possible. There is other options other than surgery though. Doctors can use radiation to treat the cancer. Using radiation, from an external beam, can destroy cancer cells without using any surgery. Another favorite method is chemotherapy. This is using medicine to take care of the cancer. Chemotherapy is often used to help the radiation along. Some doctors also acquire certain diets may abet to either prevent or help find rid of the cancer. Eating a lot of fruits and vegetables may help lower the risk or lower the severity of the cancer. This is because fruits and vegetables are high in vitamin C, vitamin E, and selenium. All of these are believed to help with all kinds of cancer. The doctor will usually work with the patient to come up with the best draw to treat the cancer.
Smoking tobacco is one of the biggest causes of cancer in men and women. In the United States, about 90% of lung cancer deaths in men and almost 80% of lung cancer deaths in women are due to smoking. People who smoke are 10 to 20 times more likely to pick up lung cancer or die from lung cancer than people who do not smoke. The longer a person smokes and the more cigarettes smoked each day the more risk goes up (“emedicinehealth.com”). Quitting smoking does lower the chance of getting lung cancer compared to if the smoker had unprejudiced kept smoking. Smoking cigarettes increases the chance of lung cancer more than cigars or using a pipe. There are other things that have carcinogens, things that can cause cancer, in them. Radon gas is an odorless and colorless gas that can accumulate trapped in houses and other buildings. This gas comes from rocks and dirt and is know to cause cancer. Some other substances to be aware of are asbestos, a material that is made from tiny fibers that enter the lungs, arsenic, used has a pesticide, and some types of silica, found in rocks and things like that can get into buildings. All of these substances are know to have carcinogens in them, and they have all been found in homes and workplaces. Some risk factors for lung cancer can’t be helped or avoided. People that have relatives diagnosed with lung cancer are at a higher risk to get it themselves. This is for two reasons. The person may have learned some behaviors that cause cancer, like smoking. The other reason is because it is inherited in the person’s genes, and this can’t be prevented or changed.
In conclusion, Lung cancer is a pretty serious thing. It is the leading cause of deaths among cancers. This is for both men and women, and only recently has surpassed breast cancer for cancer deaths in women. There are several ways to be diagnosed with lung cancer. Biopsy, bronchoscopy, and a mediastinoscopy could all be old-fashioned, and most of the time more than one test is used to diagnose the patient. Once someone is diagnosed with lung cancer there are some ways to treat the cancer. Surgery can be used, but there are a lot of different options for surgery. Some of these options are wedge resection, removing the part of the lung that is cancerous, a lobotomy, removing one of the lobes of a lung, and a pneumonectomy, which is removing an entire lung. Chemotherapy and radiation are treatments that can be used without surgery. Eating a lot of fruits and vegetables is thought to decrease the chance of getting lung cancer and also to succor kind of treat the cancer. Lung cancer has a lot of risk factors. One of the biggest risk factors is smoking. Smoking cigarettes has the highest risk for causing lung cancer even though cigars and tobacco pipes still cause cancer. Other carcinogens can be found around some houses and in workplaces. Radon gas, asbestos, and arsenic are examples of what can be found in homes and where people work. There is a higher risk for lung cancer if it runs in a person’s family. So it can be inherited in human genes. Lung cancer is a very serious issue that can be very fatal.
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