Presenting a fairly common disease among all cancerous lesions of the body, lung adenocarcinoma occurs in 12-35% of cases of diagnosed lesions of lung tissue.
May occur in men and women with the same frequency. However, according to some researchers, adenocarcinoma can occur three times more often in men.
What is the disease?
Externally, adenocarcinoma manifests itself in the form of numerous nodules of various sizes and with different densities.
Their surface is mostly gray and shades of white and yellowish-brown.
In the knots there are areas with a colorless, transparent color.
Classification
This lesion of lung tissue is divided according to the degree of differentiation. So, there are three types:
- highly differentiated;
- moderately differentiated;
- is a low-grade type of adenocarcinoma of the lung.
Next, each type also has some separation depending on the degree of disease activity.
- The highly differentiated adenocarcinomas are characterized by a high activity of cell growth and their division. They are prone to abundant mucus secretion. They are usually referred to as papillary and acinar neoplasms.
- To moderately differentiated this lung tissue lesion is a tumor with a glandular solid structure of the body. In them, the mucus process is carried out only by a part of the cells.
- Low-differential adenocarcinomas form predominantly approximately uniform presence of mucus-forming and solid cells.
Separately it is necessary to allocate bronhiolo-alveolar type of a cancer. In this case, the pathological cells spread along the walls of the bronchi and alveoli.
Causes of
Adenocarcinoma of the lung, being a cancer, can be diagnosed in both smokers and non-smokers.
Although it is generally accepted( which is proven in numerous case studies) that oncological lung lesions occur most often in people who smoke, adenocarcinoma is also common in passive smokers. In this case, the glandular tissue predominates in the cancer cells.
The most common causes of this type of lung tissue damage include the following:
- genetic predisposition;
- pneumosclerosis - this condition is characterized by a gradual replacement of pulmonary connective tissue;
- regular inhalation of volatile carcinogens;
- asbestosis, an occupational disease;
- viruses that actively propagate in bronchial tissues and lead to the occurrence of diseases with a lesion of the DNA structure.
However, the most common cause of adenocarcinoma of the lung should be considered smoking.
Symptoms of
Adenocarcinoma of the lung at the first stages of development has no noticeable external manifestations.
However, as the number of nodules and lesions of the lung tissue increase, the symptoms characteristic of the diseases are revealed, which include the following:
- coughing;
- tenderness in the chest, when coughing, giving back to the back and even hands;
- abundant discharge of mucus when coughing( this is a symptom of an already developed disease);
- pleurisy.
Therefore, even with the seemingly minor manifestations listed above, you should immediately consult a doctor for a survey.
Stages of
This oncological disease has several stages of development. There are several degrees of gradual expansion of pathological changes that are characteristic for each stage of adenocarcinoma of the lung tissue.
First
At this stage, the disease locally affects one segment of the lung or bronchus. The size of the tumor is relatively small( no more than 3 cm in diameter), there are no metastases yet.
Externally, this stage is almost not manifested, there may be some increased drowsiness and general decline in the strength of
. The second
In 2 stages the disease progresses, the tumor sizes increase - within 6 cm. The tumor itself remains in the segment of the lung or bronchus, and the metastases are relatively smalland affect the adjacent tissues and lymph nodes that are located near the affected area of the lung.
Third
At the 3 stages of the pathological process, the tumor actively increases in size, metastases begin to penetrate into the adjacent and distant lymph nodes.
The patient's condition deteriorates significantly, a characteristic cough with the release of a large amount of sputum occurs.
Fourth
At 4 stages of development of adenocracinoma of the lung, the tumor already extends beyond the limits of one segment of the lung, the cancerous cells affect the main bronchus. Cancerous pleurisy can develop.
Metastases penetrate into all adjacent tissues. The patient's condition is rapidly deteriorating.
Diagnosis of
Detection of the disease in the early stages of its development is largely hampered, because during this period there are no external manifestations of the ongoing pathological process.
The most effective methods for detecting pathology in lung tissue include:
- blood test;
- fluoroscopic examination;
- obtaining endoscopic data;
- biopsy of bronchi and lung tissue;
- bronchoscopy;
- bronchial secretion study;
- CT of the lungs.
Usually, on an x-ray, with development of adenocarcinoma, an indistinctly outlined shadow or darkening appears, which may be a pathological process developing in the part of the lung.
As an additional study, ultrasound can be performed in the pleural area and a biased prescale.
Treatment of
Since the most common treatment for adenocarcinoma of the lung is already in the second or third stage, surgery may be offered as a surgical intervention. In this case, the area of partial resection of the lung or bronchus depends on the location of the tumor. Complete removal of the lung can also be performed.
Prediction of adenocarcinoma of the lungs
With the advanced disease and under treatment, the survival prognosis for pulmonary adenocarcinoma within 5 years is no more than 10-15%.If a part of the lung was resected and the treatment had pronounced results, then the five-year survival rate is much higher - about 80-85%.
Video about statistics, causes, symptoms and methods of lung cancer diagnosis: