With so many dangers associated with smoking, especially the correlation between smoking and the development of lung cancer, it is amazing to see how many people continue to voluntarily take part in this activity! Why is it that these mostly mature, reasonably intelligent men and women of every nationality allow such a small object to have so much control over their lives? You’d think it would be easy to just say “NO” to this tiny little death machine, but in reality it just isn’t so.

Why? Because smoking is a habit and habits are hard to break. Interestingly even efforts to raise the price of a pack of cigarettes have failed to slow the demand. And even though they aren’t cheap, cigarettes are very easy to buy, which makes it even harder to break this habit.

Smoking is the number one contributor to lung cancer. Besides causing lung cancer, cigarette smoking can cause other health-related problems including emphysema, bronchitis, and heart disease. Combine cigarette smoking with excess weight, stress, and a sedentary lifestyle, and a person who smokes literally becomes a ticking time bomb.

Here are some interesting bits of information about smoking and lung cancer.

Any amount of smoking can ultimately cause lung cancer, but how long you have been smoking, how deeply you inhale, and how many cigarettes you smoke on a regular basis all impact the development of lung cancer. It goes without saying that people who smoke a pack or more a day and who have smoked most of their lives are significantly increasing the likelihood that lung cancer will develop.

Quitting smoking may not stop lung cancer from developing, but doing so still is highly advisable. You immediately lower your risk of developing lung cancer the moment you stop (but only when you stop for good). The body will go into repair mode within a day or two after you stop. It’s not possible to determine whether the damage that has been done internally can be corrected, but stopping is worth the gamble.

Women are just as much at risk of developing lung cancer from smoking as men are, assuming equivalent smoking patterns and history. When it comes to lung cancer, men generally get most of the attention. There are more cases of men with smoking-related lung cancer than there are women, but don’t let this statistic fool you. Women are in danger too. In fact, more women die each year from smoking-related lung cancer than from breast cancer.

Passive smoking can also cause lung cancer, even in people who do not smoke. Passive smoking is the same as inhaling second-hand smoke. If you smoke, be considerate to others who don’t. Don’t smoke in enclosed spaces such as homes or cars. This is especially important around small children who don’t even realize the dangers they’re being exposed to.

If a pregnant woman smokes, her unborn baby smokes too!

And finally smoking is the cause of 90% of the cases of lung cancer. That alone should keep you from starting!

About the Author:Gray Rollins is a featured writer for LifeLungCancer.com. To learn more about new lung cancer research and the link between smoking and lung cancer, visit our site.

Article Source: ArticlesBase.com – How Smoking Increases The Risk Of Lung Cancer

A recent in the US is offering hope for testing for lung cancer. US scientists have now developed and already tested a prototype breath test to detect lung cancer. This may enable doctors to detect lung cancer at earlier stages.

The results of the US study test was published in the international journal of respiratory medicine Thorax.

In the tests, the colour testing device, which is the size of a coin and is surprisingly inexpensive, had a 75 per cent success rate in detecting people with different cancers.

However, the tests were not 100 per cent accurate. The device showed false positives on people who did not have lung cancer. This reduces the device’s effectiveness removing doctor’s ability to start immediate treatments.

The technique called a “colorimetric sensor array” picks up the chemical fingerprint of the breath of people with lung cancer that are caused by the tumours.

Cancers produce volatile organic compounds (VOCs) that are different from normal cells. Tumours in the lungs are more likely to contain increased signs of these abnormal compounds. This increases the potential for the device to pick up a lung cancer “fingerprint” in the breath.

Surprisingly, dogs are able to detect VOCs and differentiate between people with lung cancer and healthy people. With ‘early response’ a major factor in survival rates, there are many who wonder why dogs are not trained to detect VOCs in the same manner that dogs are trained to detect drugs and other compounds.

The prototype of this device was developed by Dr Peter Mazzone of the The Cleveland Clinic in Ohio in collaboration with the private company ChemSensing of Champaign, Illinois. The private company customizes Metalloporphyrins, a chemically reactive dye family that are sensitive to VOCs.

They are working to develop an inexpensive device. The only equipment available to the public are mass spectrometers or gas chromatographs. These are expensive and require the services of an expert to analyse the results.

The new device resembles a 2 cm square key fob with a 6 by 6 pattern of coloured dots visible through the plastic casing. Changes in the pattern of the dots indicate the presence of VOCs in the breath based on the gas makeup of the breath.

Scientists tested 143 patients. Patients needed to breathe into the device for 12 minutes. The test group was divided into three groups. Some patients had lung cancer at various stages, some had other forms of respiratory illnesses like emphysema. The rest were healthy.

The device spotted 73 per cent of the lung cancer patients and cleared 72 per cent of the non-lung cancer patients. This is not 100 per cent, but the results are acceptable.

The US National Cancer Institute reports that lung cancer is the second most common cancer and the most common cause of cancer-related deaths in the US, with more than 200,000 new cases diagnosed, and 160,000 plus deaths due to the disease each year.

The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that the global annual death rate from lung cancer at 1.3 million.

About the Author:Ethan Miller advises on improving your heath and reducing pain from his web site at http://www.lowcarbrescue.com He invites you to get his FREE health guide http://www.heartpatrol.com
Article Source: ArticlesBase.com – Early Detection For Lung Cancer

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Lung cancer may be treated by a variety of therapies including surgery, but chemotherapy and radiation treatments are used extensively to treat the disease whether surgery takes place or not.

Chemotherapy

Chemotherapy involves drug medication which is designed to kill fast growing cells in the body – cancer cells are fast growing and it is this uncontrolled growth which causes tumors to develop. Unfortunately, the medications which are administered are unable to differentiate between cancer cells and other fast growing cells, such as the red blood cells and hair. As a consequence, there are side effects involved in receiving chemotherapy which includes hair loss and other debilitating symptoms.

Many patients do not like the idea of receiving chemotherapy because they have heard of the side effects usually associated with receiving the treatment. Management of the side effects has come a long way and in many instances, patients do not experience them to as great an extent as they originally anticipated.

Typically, chemotherapy will involve a combination of drugs which will target specific types of cancer cell – not all cancer cells are fast growing, and different drugs will attack different types of cancer cell depending on the stage it has reached.

Radiotherapy or Radiation Treatment

Radiation treatment uses ionizing radiation such as gamma rays to kill cancer cells. The radiation can be targeted very precisely at the area where the cancer has occurred within the body and in some instances is capable of being delivered so that it affects only the tumor and not healthy tissue.

Radiation treatment may also be used to reduce the size of a tumor so that it becomes operable.

Radiation stops cells from undergoing division and forming new copies of the DNA which they contain. If a cell is reproducing quickly, it is likely to be susceptible to radiation which will interfere in its development and as cancer cells are fast growing, they are especially vulnerable to the treatment. Unfortunately, cancer cells are not the only cells which are fast growing as we have already seen, and radiation therapy affects blood cells, hair and skin.

Side effects include hair loss, redness of the skin, itching, loss of skin through the outer layers sloughing off, pain and heightened sensitivity, skin pigmentation and swelling (known as “edema”).

Both therapies may cause a loss in appetite, changes in how your sense of taste and heart issues as well as nausea and vomiting. Patients undergoing these treatments tend to become tired very easily while receiving treatment and there is an increased risk of infection as the white blood cells are also adversely affected by the treatment.

We have already noted that radiation treatment may be used to shrink a tumor so it may be removed, but they also are used to tackle cancers which do not lend themselves to surgery in the first instance. Small Cell Lung Cancer (SCLC) is usually inoperable and is treated by these joint therapies while operable lung cancers use these treatments both before and after surgery to ensure that any cells which have not been removed by surgery are killed off to prevent recurrence of the condition.

Find the right lung cancer doctors or mitral valve repair surgeons. Early diagnosis can lead to successful results.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Elizabeth_L_Perkins

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Lung cancer may be treated by a variety of therapies which are frequently used in combination to provide an optimal outcome for the patient. Surgical resection is the process by which the tumor is surgically removed, and this is usually recommended when the cancer has not metastasized (or spread) beyond the lung into other parts of the body.

There are several options for performing a resection which may involve minimally invasive surgery or a full operation. Which technique is used will depend on a variety of factors, notably the size and stage of the cancer and whether the tumor can be accessed by the surgeon.

A thoracotomy is performed by the surgeon making an incision through the chest wall and a median sternotomy is performed by entering the chest cavity through the breastbone. Both of these methods are commonly employed in lung cancer surgery but they do involve considerable patient discomfort and extended stays in hospital with a longer recovery period.

Alternative surgical procedures include an anterior limited thoracotomy (ALT) which involves a small incision to allow entry, again through the front of the chest. It should be stressed that the incision is considerably smaller than in a standard thoracotomy or median sternotomy. An alternative is the anterior axillary thoracotomy (AAT) which involves a small incision on the chest front but near the underarm and finally, there is the postero-lateral thoracotomy (PLT) which involves an incision the back or side of the of the patient’s trunk.

Even with these improved surgical techniques, a patient will experience considerable pain if the operation involves opening the chest (sometimes referred to amongst doctors as “chest cracking”).

As a consequence of the extended recovery times and patient discomfort, surgical techniques have been developed which do not involve full-blown surgery – these are the so-called, minimally-invasive techniques.

Video-assisted thoracoscopy (VAT) uses a high powered video camera and hi-definition screen combined with diagnostic scans, such as CT or PET scan, to target the tumors in the patient’s lung. The incision required is much smaller and there is no need to open the chest cavity which results in much less discomfort for the patient and greatly reduced recovery periods. Using the video display, the surgeon is able to resect the tumors which have been identified during the diagnosis and staging phases.

Some doctors do caution the use of VAT however, as a traditional thoracotomy may reveal tumors and other metastasized cancers which have not been discovered in the initial scans and diagnosis. If these remain undiscovered the cancer can return and the patient will become ill again and for this reason, VAT is usually recommended for early stage (I & II) cancers and which have not spread to other parts for the lungs and body.

It is quite usual for any surgical procedure to be accompanied by a phase of chemotherapy or radiation treatment to ensure that the patient’s cancer has been completely removed or killed off. How the treatment proceeds and at what stage a particular therapy will be recommended will be determined by the type and stage of lung cancer a patient has got.

Find the right doctor for lung cancer surgery or mitral valve disease. Early diagnosis can lead to successful results.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Elizabeth_L_Perkins

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There are two types of lung cancer; non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and small cell lung cancer (SCLC). NSCLC is the most prevalent of the two with around 80% of lung cancer cases being this type. It begins when the cells of the lungs start to grow rapidly and uncontrollably which ultimately leads to the formation of a tumour. This tumour continues to grow and damages the lung cells around it. NSCLC can go unnoticed but if you know what to look out for it can be diagnosed and treated early. In this article I will be discussing three of the possible warning signs for NSCLC.

1) CHEST PAINS:- Chest pain is a possible warning sign for non-small cell lung cancer. The chest pain may be constant or sporadic. Some chest pains will only come about when you are breathing or coughing. However, other chest pains will have no apparent cause. If you notice any type of chest pain you should go and see your doctor right away. They will then be able to determine the cause of these chest pains and let you know if they are related to NSCLC.

2) COUGHING:- Any cough that lingers for more than a week or two usually indicates that there is a problem with your lungs. Some coughs will be basic and just make your throat feel dry. However, other coughs will be more serious and cause pain or result in blood being coughed up. If you notice any type of cough that does not disappear after a week then you should inform your doctor. If any blood comes up you should go see your doctor immediately as this is one of the more serious NSCLC symptoms. Although the coughing may prove not to be linked to NSCLC your doctor will be able to perform the tests and give you an accurate diagnosis.

3) FATIGUE.- A number of cancers including NSCLC can cause you to become fatigued. This is when you feel tired and lack energy all the time, even if you have adequate rest. It is not fully understood why non-small cell lung cancer leads to fatigue but one good theory is that the cancerous cells compete for nutrients at the expense of normal cells. This then prevents the normal cells from growing and functioning properly. If you feel extremely tired and these feelings do not go away even when you get plenty of rest and sleep you should go see your doctor. They will then be able to identify the cause of this chronic fatigue.

NSCLC is responsible for approximately 40,000 deaths each year. However, it is much more treatable if it is caught early. If you notice any of the above early warning signs you need to consult your doctor right away. Although the symptoms may be unrelated to non-small cell lung cancer they are often your body’s way of telling you that something is up. Your doctor will be able to see what is causing these symptoms and provide you with the proper advice and treatment.

Whilst every intention has been made to make this article accurate and informative, it is intended for general information only. Lung cancer is a very serious, life threatening condition and you should discuss any concerns, treatments or lifestyle changes fully with your doctor.

Tom Parker owns and operates a number of useful fitness resources and websites. You can learn more about lung cancer and how improving your fitness can help you prevent cancer by visiting his Free Fitness Tips Blog
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Thomas_Parker

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