Contributed by Healthians Team
Cancer is a disease that occurs due to the abnormal growth of cells in the body. When it occurs in the lungs, it is called lung cancer. Cancer begins from the lungs and might spread into lymph nodes or other organs in the body. The cells of the lung mutate and cluster in the form of a tumor. Lung cells are easily exposed to dangerous chemicals such as smoking.
But as per the study, people who smoke frequently have a higher risk of lung cancer even though people who never smoke can also be infected by lung cancer. The risk of having cancer increases with the number of cigarettes someone has smoked. Quitting smoking can reduce the chances of having lung cancer.
There are two main types of lung cancers: small cell lung cancer and non-small cell lung cancer. The latter one is a more common type of lung cancer. The symptoms of lung cancer usually do not appear but if it has spread to other organs of the body, the symptoms start appearing. The symptoms of lung cancers include:
- A cough that does not go away and becomes worse day by day.
- Coughing up blood
- Chest pain in deep breathing, coughing, or laughing
- Hoarseness
- Loss of appetite
- unexplained weight loss
- shortness of breath
- Feeling tired or weak
- Infections such as pneumonia or bronchitis that does not go away
- New onset of wheezing
- Headache
- Bone pain
Generally, the symptoms of lung cancer do not appear as discussed above but they start appearing once it has reached to advance state when treating it becomes difficult.
Causes of Lung cancer
Lung can happen with anyone but 90 percent of lung cancer cases are happened due to smoking. Once you start inhaling smoke, it begins to damage your lung tissues. In the initial stage, the lungs can repair the damage but continuous inhalation of smoke makes it difficult for the lungs to repair the damage. Once lung cells are damaged, they start growing abnormally leading to lung cancer. Not only smoking but breathing other hazardous substances such as uranium, arsenic, chromium, some petroleum products, and cadmium may cause lung cancer.
Prevention of Lung cancer
Once you get lung cancer, it becomes difficult to diagnose it. But there are some tips that you can follow to lower the risk of lung cancer. Those include:
- Stay away from tobacco and avoid standing among the people who smoke. If you quit smoking before the development of cancer, your lungs may repair it and save you from serious illnesses.
- Eat healthy food with lots of fruits and vegetables. A diet rich in fruits and vegetables may save both smokers and non-smokers from lung cancer.
- Avoid second-hand smoke.
- Regular workouts may help you to reduce the risk of lung cancer.
The bottom line
Diagnosing lung cancer is difficult but it can be managed by following proper precautions and healthy tips.
