Some Smoking Facts

 

Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer deaths and cigarette smoking is responsible for more than three-fourth of lung cancer cases. What is even more disturbing is that health risks caused by cigarette smoking are not limited to smokers only. The secondhand smoke or environmental tobacco smoke increases the risk of lung cancer in non-smokers as well.

 

Early symptoms of lung cancer

 

·         Difficulties in swallowing is one of the early symptom of lung cancer;

·         Abnormalities of the fingers or finger nails is another;

·         Paleness of the skin or bluish coloration;

·         Muscle atrophy or shrinkage is yet another early symptom of lung cancer;

·         Swelling or pain in the joints may indicate an early symptom;

·         Tenderness or pain in the bones;

·         Drooping of eyelids;

·         Enlargement of breasts in men is also an early symptom of lung cancer.

 

The other early symptoms of lung cancer include:

 

·         Cough which may be blood stained;

·         Difficulty in breathing;

·         Loss of weight;

·         Chest pain;

 

Diagnosis for early symptoms of lung cancer

 

Lung cancer in one-fourth of the patients cannot be detected easily because the early symptoms of lung cancer do not appear in them or are so subtle that they cannot be noticed. And, when these early symptoms of lung cancer are detected they have already taken a serious turn and are incurable. In such cases, the early symptoms of lung cancer are identified when doctors get an x-ray done on the chest, though not necessarily for lung cancer.

 

As for the remaining three-fourth cases, early symptoms of lung cancer can be seen as: having chest pain, cough that does not go after treatment, blood filled sputum, breathlessness, hoarse voice, wheezing; feeling tired all the time; not feeling hungry, excessive weight loss, swelling in face; swelling in neck and frequent attacks of pneumonia and bronchitis.

 

Three early symptoms of lung cancer that needs immediate attention

 

The early symptoms of lung cancer needing immediate attention are:

 

·         Cough that does not seem to go along with blood laced sputum 

·         Chest pain. Particularly so if the problem happens while breathing or coughing.

·         Feeling short of breath.

 

These are the three early symptoms of lung cancer that should not be ignored. You should see your doctor immediately if you find any of these early symptoms of lung cancer. More so if your age is above 40.

 

Early symptoms of lung cancer are eye-openers

 

If you look at these early symptoms of lung cancer as your well wishers, you can take immediate steps to quit smoking and prevent lung cancer to set in. These early symptoms of lung cancer are an indicator of things to come. By quitting smoking you can reduce the chances of getting cancer and other diseases. Quitting smoking decreases the risk of various forms of cancers, stroke, heart attack and chronic lung disease. The earlier you quit, the greater the health benefit. Research has shown that people who quit before the age of 50 reduce their risk of dying in the next 15 years by half compared with those who continue to smoke.