Lung cancer
Description:
Lung cancer (bronchogenic cancer, bronchogenic carcinoma) — a malignant new growth of a lung, the events from epithelial tissue of bronchial tubes of various caliber. Depending on the place of emergence it is subdivided on central and peripheral.
Lung cancer symptoms:
At a quarter of all patients with lung cancer, symptoms in general are not observed. In their case, cancer is diagnosed accidentally when performing a X-ray analysis for other reasons. Other patients have some symptoms from behind a direct impact of primary tumor, effect of metastatic tumors in other parts of a body or malignant disturbances of hormones, blood, and other systems of an organism. Symptoms of primary lung cancer include cough, blood expectoration, a stethalgia and an asthma.
Emergence of cough in the smoker has to bring up a question of lung cancer.
* Cough which does not pass or worsens for a long time has to be inspected by the doctor.
* Expectoration of blood happens at a significant amount of patients to lung cancer.
* The stethalgia is a symptom about one quarter of people with lung cancer.
* An asthma usually happens because of partial blocking of a lung.
* Wheezing and a dysphonia can signal about blocking or an inflammation in lungs which can be caused by cancer.
* Repeated respiratory infections, such as bronchitis or pneumonia, can be a symptom of cancer of lung.
Symptoms of metastatic rashes of skin depend on location and the size of a tumor. Approximately 30-40% of people with lung cancer have some symptoms of a metastatic disease.
Lung cancer most often extends to a liver, adrenal glands, bones and a brain.
* Metastatic lung cancer in a liver usually does not cause symptoms.
* Metastatic lung cancer in adrenal glands also usually does not cause symptoms during the diagnosis.
* The metastasis to bones is most of all widespread at small-celled cancer.
* Lung cancer which extends to a brain can cause problems with sight, weakness of one side of a body, and/or attacks.
Paraneoplastic syndromes of cancer:
* Thickening of phalanxes of fingers
* Bone formation along shins and hands
* Anemia - the low level of erythrocytes and high level of calcium or low level of sodium in blood
* Other effects: weakness of muscles, rashes of skin and degeneration of a brain
* Loss of weight
* Fatigue
* Low level of sodium
* When it is worth seeing a doctor
Lung cancer reasons:
Cancer of a lung is most connected with household habits, environment factors, lifestyle and conditions of production.
Negative impact (cancerogenic action) on tissue of a lung is exerted by many chemicals: polycyclic aromatic carbohydrates (pitches, coke, gases), some simple organic compounds (vinyl chloride, chlormethyl ethers). Some other inorganic compounds and substances, such as lead, arsenic, chrome, cadmium. Especially a lot of lead is in the soil near the central tracks since it in a large number contains in exhaust gases from cars.
Also increased incidence of lung cancer at miners, workers of steelmaking, woodworking, metallurgical industry, ceramic asbestos-cement and phosphatic production. Still influence in formation of cancer of lung and the ionizing radiation is also proved.
For this reason the incidence of cancer of a lung is much higher in the developed endustrialny countries.
Cancer therapy of lungs:
The chemotherapy uses strong drugs for destruction of cancer cells. Chemotherapy - the most effective therapy at small-celled lung cancer which can stop growth of cancer cells. The chemotherapy is also used for treatment of late stages of not small-celled lung cancer.
The chemotherapy is called system treatment as drugs come to a blood stream, passed through all organism and cancer cells both in and outside of a lung kill. Some drugs of chemotherapy are accepted orally while others are entered intravenously. Extensive researches and clinical tests studied efficiency of various medicines for chemotherapy. Some of them are used independently, others in a combination with additional drugs. Certain drugs can be used before or after surgery. The oncologist will choose optimum treatment for the individual patient. Treat the main drugs used at chemotherapy:
* Karboplatin
* Cisplatinum
* Dotsetaksel
* Эрлотиниб
* Etopozid
* Gemcitabine
* Irinotekan
* Paklitaksel
* Pemetreksed
* Topotekan
* Vinorelbin
* Гефинитиб. This drug is used for cancer therapy of lungs, but recent researches showed that its use does not lift survival coefficient. Management on control of products and drugs of the United States (FDA) recommends to the patients accepting this drug to continue treatment and to consult with the treating oncologist.
* Bevatsizumab – the intravenous drug preventing formation of the blood vessels transferring nutrients of a tumor and promoting growth of cancer cells. Researches showed that simultaneous use of a bevatsizumab with some other forms of chemotherapy, promotes extension of life. Bevatsizumab is approved for use in a complex with karboplatiny and paklitaksely for the purpose of treatment of not small-celled cancer. However, consult with the doctor as this drug has serious side effects.
The majority of drugs of chemotherapy causes side effects. The doctor can appoint drugs for control of nausea and vomiting. The chemotherapy can be applied before surgery or after it to destruction of cancer cells. Many clinical tests study an opportunity and efficiency of various combinations of drugs at various stages of lung cancer. Discuss all possible options with the oncologist. Radiation therapy can be appointed in a complex with chemotherapy for treatment of certain types of tumors.
