Lung Cancer

Similar to all other cancers, cancer in the lung is the result of an abnormal growth of cells in the lung tissues. The cell growth may create a lung tumor. When the tumor is benign, it will be surgically extracted. When the tumor is malignant the result is lung cancer.

Lung Cancer Video

Lung cancer tends to spread (metastasize) very early. Therefore, it is a life-threatening cancer and is the most common cause of cancer related death.

Although lung cancer may spread into any organ, it usually spreads to the liver, brain, adrenal glands and bone. If the cancer spreads to these organs it may be classified as stage 4 lung cancer.

Small and Non-small Cell Lung Cancer

There are two main subdivisions of lung cancer:

• Small cell lung carcinoma (SCLC) - related to smoking
• Non-small cell lung carcinoma (NSCLC) - the most common lung cancers

The main difference between small cell lung carcinoma and non-small cell lung carcinoma is the way the cancer spreads. This will also influence the treatment options.

Lung Cancer Symptoms

As in many other different types of cancer, lung cancer may appear without symptoms or with symptoms that can easily be attributed to other diseases.

The most significant symptoms include:

• Coughing (a persistent bronchitis or a chronic cough) and coughing up blood (or blood in the sputum).
• Chest pain
• Weight loss
• Shortness of breath and other breathing difficulties

A chest radiograph or CT scan may trace lung cancer. The diagnosis is confirmed with a biopsy.

The lung cancer stage represents the nature and extent of spread of the cancer. Cancer staging allows the doctor to establish the relevant treatment plan.

NSCLC is staged according to the tumor size, level of lymph node involvement and extent of distant metastases (how far the cancer has spread).

Lung Cancer Treatment

The first part of lung cancer treatment is identifying the cancer type. Small cell lung carcinoma usually responds better to chemotherapy and radiation while non-small cell lung carcinoma may be treated with surgery (surgically removing the cancer). In many cases the patient is treated with the combination of chemotherapy, radiation therapy and a surgery.

General cancer treatment is sometimes given in order to cure the cancer (in case of lung cancer- to remove or eradicate the cancer) or only to control it or relieve the symptoms (a palliative treatment).

The individual treatment plan takes under consideration the location and extent of the lung tumor and the overall health of the patient.

Recovering From Lung Cancer Surgery

During lung cancer surgery the cancerous lung or the lobe of a lung is removed. This is considered to be a major procedure and will require approximately a week of hospitalization (sometimes a longer period will be required). Following hospital discharge, the patient will need several weeks or even months to recover.

Lung Cancer Treatment Abroad

Lung cancer requires the best care. Many hospitals, oncology centers and clinics offer cancer treatments. Although the wide range of options shows the extent of knowledge in the field of cancer it can also confuse and scare patients.

Here at TicketMed we aim to make the process of finding your lung cancer treatment less complicated. A TicketMed agent will accompany you in this path and assure your satisfaction in the process.

Please feel free to contact us or ask for a quote.