PT Health Life – According to research, the incidence rate of lung cancer ranks first among all types of cancer. the incidence rate of lung cancer is second only to liver cancer.
Lung cancer is closely related to passive and active smoking. The disease is very difficult to detect in the early stages because there are no obvious symptoms. Most are discovered in the late stages, making it very difficult to treat.
1. Non-Small cell Lung Cancer group is common in 90% of cases. Includes 3 types
- Adenocarcinoma accounts for 80%
- Squamous cell carcinoma accounts for 5%
- Large cell carcinoma accounts for 5%
2. Small cell Lung Cancer accounts for 10%
The progression of lung cancer over time can develop gradually:
- Cysts form solid nodules
- The glass has blurred into solid spots
- Semi-solid to completely solid
- Thicker becomes thicker
The disease has many forms:
- Dendritic dendrites contract
- Smooth, round solid body
- Solid body with Halo border
- Inflammatory consolidation
- Cystic body, cavernous body
- Fibrotic scar
Therefore, according to Dr. Minh Duc, the lesions are fibrous scars, retractions, and cystic lesions with small nodules, buds, semi-solid nodules, and ground glass in long-term smokers (from 20 packs/year, including smokers). Both active and passive) require close monitoring and management with low-dose CT every 6-12 months. If the nodule is at risk of turning malignant, it should be re-evaluated after 3 months.
Lung cancer will metastasize to the contralateral lung, hilar lymph nodes, mediastinal lymph nodes, tracheo-bronchial lymph nodes, supraclavicular lymph nodes, axillary lymph nodes, adrenal glands, liver, brain and bones, especially the vertebrae at the horizontal level. or near the primary cancer.
3. Lung cancer stages
After being diagnosed with cancer, patients and their families are often concerned about what stage the cancer is in? The stage of lung cancer is greatly related to the choice of treatment method and the patient’s survival prognosis. Lung cancer is divided into 4 stages. The higher the stage number, the more severe the symptoms of the disease are, the worse the prognosis and the shorter the patient’s survival time.
Usually people stage cancer based on the following information:
- Size and spread of the main tumor (T ): how large is the tumor? Has the tumor invaded nearby structures and organs? People divide T into: T1, T2, T3, T4 based on the size of the tumor.
- Spread to nearby lymph nodes (N ): has the cancer metastasized to nearby lymph nodes? are classified into: N1, N2, N3 depending on the number of lymph nodes affected by cancer cells.
- Metastasis to distant organs (M): has the cancer metastasized to distant organs such as the brain, bones, liver, adrenal glands? Divided into: M0 (no metastatic cancer found ) and M1 (cancer metastatic to distant tissues and organs).
Based on the grading of T, N, M, lung cancer is divided into stages:
- Stage I: divided into stages IA (IA1, IA2, IA3), IB
- Stage II: IIA, IIB.
- Stage III: IIIA, IIIB, IIIC.
- Stage IV: IVA, IVB
4. It is necessary to detect lung cancer early
Usually lung cancer has no obvious symptoms and is easily confused with common symptoms. Some common symptoms of early stage lung cancer are below:
- The cough doesn’t go away and gets worse
- Frequent chest pain
- Hemoptisi
- Difficulty breathing, stuffy nose, hoarse voice
- Recurrent pneumonia and bronchitis
- Swelling of the face and neck
- Patients lose their appetite or lose weight
- Always feeling tired.
Summary: Lung cancer is a common type. In the early stages, lung cancer may cause no signs or a few symptoms such as a prolonged dry cough, cough with bloody phlegm, or ineffective medication.
In advanced stages or metastatic cancer, the patient will have symptoms depending on the extent and location of metastasis.
Usually lung cancer is discovered during screening or accidentally discovered during examination for other diseases. In addition to regular disease screening, we should also think about lung cancer screening when signs appear such as: Prolonged cough, sometimes with phlegm or blood; Chest pain that gets worse with deep breathing or coughing; Hoarseness; Short of breath; Wheeze; Weakness, fatigue; Anorexia; Weight loss…
How to prevent lung cancer
There is no absolute way to prevent lung cancer, but you can reduce your risk if:
- Don’t smoke and stay away from cigarette smoke.
- Avoid direct contact with dust and smoke, wear a mask regularly if you have to work in a dusty environment.
- Build a diet rich in fruits and vegetables.
- Exercise regularly.
- Regular health check-ups every 6 months – 1 year to detect lung damage early (if any), from which the doctor will provide appropriate treatment.
