Education is sometimes late about yourself. Symptoms are not typical only for this disease. The success in overcoming the problem depends on how timely the medical assistance will come.
Knowledge of what factors provoke pathology, what to look for, to consult with a specialist will help, avoid a problem or not miss its start.
What is lung carcinoma?
A cancer tumor that is localized in the bronchus or lungs is called lung carcinoma.
The disease in the total number of oncological problems is in second place, and in some countries on the first.
Disease is fraught with untimely care of bad consequences before death. Statistics show the level of mortality from this disease - the highest in comparison with the oncology of other organs.
Types of
By type of cells, there are two types of lung cancer.
- Small cell carcinoma. The tumor takes a fifth of the total number of lung cancers. Pathology is also called a low-grade lung carcinoma. A type of cancer in a patient is more often delayed, because it has a blurred symptomatology. The process is characterized by rapid development and the appearance of metastases.
- Non-small cell carcinoma. Pathology is divided into subspecies depending on which cells are involved in the negative process.
- Lung adenocarcinoma is a malignant formation that originates in the cells that create mucus. By frequency of cases, this species is in second place.
- Large cell carcinoma consists of large cells of rounded shape. It is formed in the layer of the nonkeratinized epithelium. The initial stage often passes unnoticed.
- Squamous cell carcinoma of the lung - pathology occurs in cells that are lining the airways. A common form of cancer. In the total number of oncology of the lungs comes first.
- Glandular - formation in its composition has only glandular structures. Development of this type of pathology begins in cambial cells. Education looks in the form of a knot of brown-yellow or gray color.
- Bronchoalveolar - involve mucus-forming cells and such that mucus does not secrete( the last cells are larger).Cancer process in its distribution retains the structure of pulmonary alveoli, the architectonics of the lungs is not destroyed.
Reasons for
Experts believe that not all the factors that trigger the appearance of this disease have been identified yet. In most cases, a direct relationship between the influence of certain circumstances and lung cancer has been found.
- Tobacco smoking. This factor is defined as the most influential among other harmful effects. Smoke, which inhales a smoking person, has in its composition 60 carcinogens. Among them:
- nitrosamine,
- radionuclides of radon,
- benzapyrene.
The main component - nicotine - in itself is capable of causing a lot of negative reactions in the body, being the initiator of malignancy of tissues. It depresses the immune system. In cases of oncology of the lungs, only 10% are not associated with tobacco smoking, the rest of the patients are smokers, and this factor is in the first place in their problem.People who have a habit of cigarettes, put the health of the surrounding people no less dangerous. Studies of the smoke inhaled from a cigarette and that is exhaled by a smoker showed that the latter is even more dangerous for passively smoking people, as those that are nearby are.
The degree of harmful influence of smoking depends on the length of service and intensity, that is, the number of cigarettes smoked per day. A person who refused this harm begins the process of restoring the lungs.
- Dust. Suspended dust particles, getting into the respiratory system, create a dangerous situation from the point of view of oncology. And the smaller the particles, the more they can get into the deeper layers of the lungs.
- Radon. In the decay of uranium, radioactive radium is formed, the product of disintegration, which is radon gas. It is released from the earth's surface depending on the composition of the rocks to a greater or lesser extent. Collects in rooms, can linger in the walls. Radon can cause cancer of the respiratory system. To remove the effect of this factor, it is necessary to regularly ventilate the premises.
- Viruses. Some viruses contribute to the appearance of neoplasms. They create conditions in the body for uncontrolled cell division. To viruses of such action carry: a cytomegalovirus, papillomas.
- Asbestos. This substance is capable of provoking lung cancer. If a person smokes, then these two factors reinforce each other.
Symptoms of
The fact that the oncological process in the lungs can indicate the following signs:
- in the chest there was a pain that intensifies with a deeper inspiration;
- chronic cough,
- lack of appetite and accordingly weight loss,
- possible the appearance of pain in the shoulder;numbness of the fingers of the hand;
- frequent fever without cause,
- dyspnea, exacerbated by exercise,
- sputum, having a brown color or blood streaks;
- in the lungs there were wheezing,
- susceptibility to diseases associated with infection of the respiratory tract;
- vision impairment,
- dizziness, headache;
- cases of loss of consciousness.
When the formation has developed to more serious consequences, the patient may have symptoms:
- skin and sclera have a yellowish appearance,
- enlarged lymph nodes,
- there is a pain in the bones.
Stages of
The danger of a pathological process depends, among other factors, on the degree of development of education and its distribution to other structures and tissues.
Specialists on this feature classify an oncological tumor as one of four stages:
- Education does not affect adjacent tissues, clearly localized. Tumor size not exceeding three centimeters( in the largest dimension).Education captures no more than one segment of the lung or bronchus.
- The tumor continues to spread. Its size does not exceed six centimeters( in the direction of the largest dimension).In lymph nodes that are near, single metastases are found.
- At this stage, in addition to the lymph nodes, the cancer process covered the nearest tissues and organs:
- vessels,
- bones,
- pleura,
- heart,
- esophagus,
- and other organs.
The tumor has dimensions in the projection, exceeding six centimeters. The localization of education goes beyond the boundaries of one segment.
- The stage, when you can not help you already, doctors only facilitate the patient's condition. The spread of the tumor goes beyond the lungs, and has reached distant organs and tissues. Extensive metastases are not only local, but also distant.
Diagnostic methods
A doctor examines a patient and, based on common signs, prescribes a survey, choosing a method or group of methods.
- Bronchoscopy - allows you to see the trachea and the condition of the bronchi. A neoplasm is determined and you can immediately take the material for a biopsy.
- Radiography is a mass and fast method. Fluorography is included in compulsory medical examinations. If the specialist seems to have suspicious elements in the results, then the X-ray is used for clarification. It is made in two projections. This method provides information about the location of the problem and the stage of development.
- Biopsy - sampling for study. More often the material is obtained by puncturing a thorax with a needle. With such methods of investigation as bronchoscopy, sampling takes place simultaneously.
- Oncological markers - study of biopsy samples in the laboratory.
- Ultrasound examination - you can see the localization of the pathology, its dimensions. The method is safe, it gives the necessary information. At the same time, it is possible to see the condition of nearby lymph nodes.
Treatment of
To get a positive result for recovery with lung carcinoma, it is necessary to remove the formation as early as possible. Auxiliary methods of helping patients - chemotherapy and radiation therapy.
- Operative intervention.
- If the case allows, then a radical removal of the pathology is made, capturing as near as possible the tissues and, if necessary, the lymph nodes.
- The patient may have contraindications for the above operation, then remove part of the tumor with a palliative method. This will ease the patient's condition to some extent.
- If time for the possibility of removal of pathology is missed, distant metastases developed, then this method is discarded.
- Chemotherapy. Select for the patient drugs that can kill the type of cancer that he found. The method can significantly improve the condition, reduce the size of education. The method itself can not cure the problem. Chemotherapy can be applied before surgery to prepare a patient for the procedure. Also, the method is used after surgery to kill pathological cells that have remained and are capable of initiating a new tumor.
Inoperable cases are used to prolong a patient's life and improve its quality. - Radiation therapy. They are used in the same way as chemotherapy to deprive cancer cells of viability. Apply after surgery or as an independent method, if no intervention is shown.
- Supportive treatment. When a patient, according to his testimony, is unable to remove a tumor or do chemotherapy, his condition is maintained to alleviate suffering and extend the life span. Such a case may be associated, for example, with the last stage of cancer.
The patient is carried out, individually selecting the procedures:- detoxification,
- anesthesia,
- blood transfusion,
- psychological help,
- symptom relief.
Prognosis and prevention of
Up to 90% of patients die if they did not seek help within two years. If the pathology is performed on time and the therapeutic effect is fixed by chemotherapy or radiotherapy, up to 70% of people get a chance to live for at least five years.
To avoid lung cancer, some rules should be observed:
- Quit smoking forever.
- Ventilate rooms, do wet cleaning.
- Minimize the possibility of contact with carcinogens.
- Do not operate in dusty environments or use respiratory protection.
- Take fluorography once a year.
Than the risk of smokers, will tell the following video: