Lung Cancer: The Deadliest Cancer

Lung cancer is a type of cancer that begins in the lungs. It is the leading cause of cancer incidence and mortality worldwide. According to GLOBOCAN, lung cancer accounts for 22, 06, 771 new cases and 17, 96,144 deaths in 2020. Lung cancer is the most common cancer in men and the 3rd most common cancer in women. It is the 4th most common cancer in India with 72, 510 cases and 66, 279 deaths in 2020.
What are the signs and symptoms of lung cancer?
Most lung cancers do not cause any symptoms until they have spread, but some people with early lung cancer do have symptoms. The most common symptoms of lung cancer include a cough that does not go away or gets worse, coughing up blood or rust-colour sputum, Chest pain that is often worse with deep breathing, coughing, or laughing, hoarseness, loss of appetite, unexplained weight loss, shortness of breath, feeling tired or weak, infections such as bronchitis and pneumonia that don’t go away or keep coming back, new onset of wheezing.
What increases your risk of getting lung cancer?
Several risk factors can make you more likely to develop lung cancer. Risk factors that you can change are tobacco smoke, second hand smoke, exposure to radon and asbestos, Exposure to other cancer-causing agents in the workplace (Diesel exhaust, etc.), taking certain dietary supplements and Arsenic in drinking water. There are also risk factors that you cannot change includes previous radiation therapy to the lungs, air pollution, personal or family history of lung cancer, smoking marijuana, e-cigarettes, talc and talcum powder.
Can Lung Cancer Be Found Early?
More than half of people with lung cancer die within one year of being diagnosed. The lung cancer five-year survival rate is 18.6-19%, which is lower than many other leading cancer sites. This means 19 out of 100 people diagnosed with cancer live 5 years or longer. The five-year survival rate for lung cancer is 56 5% for cases detected when the disease is still localized within the lungs. However, only 16% of lung cancer cases are diagnosed at an early stage. For distant tumours which are spread to other organs the five-year survival rate is only 5%. No one, including your doctors, can say for sure how long you may live after your diagnosis. But one big predictor is how early your cancer was caught. Unfortunately, lung cancer grows fast, but you may not notice any symptoms early on. That’s why some 40% of lung cancers aren’t discovered until the most serious stage: IV. Screening for individuals at high risk has the potential to dramatically improve lung cancer survival rates by finding the disease at an earlier stage when it is more likely to be curable. Early detection, by low-dose CT screening, can decrease lung cancer mortality by 14 - 20% among high-risk populations.
What are the treatments options?
Until recently, conventional treatment options for lung cancer included surgery, chemotherapy, and radiation. Since the majority of lung cancer patients are diagnosed with advanced disease, these treatments are unlikely to result in complete cures, though they may significantly improve survival and provide symptom relief. Immunotherapy is class of treatments that helps a person’s own immune system eliminate or control cancer. More conventional treatments, attack lung cancer cells in ways that risk affecting both cancerous and healthy cells alike. Immunotherapy, on the other hand, helps your body fight cancer using its natural defences, which means it has the potential to be a more effective treatment option, sometimes controlling the disease for years.
Teaching your body's immune system to recognize and destroy cancer cells is a less toxic way of treating lung cancer, one that has a lower chance of harming healthy cells.
Studies have shown an increase in overall survival rates and in progression-free survival of patients who are treated with immunotherapy. Also there is a reduction in the mortality rate by approximately 2.5 percent a year.
Dr. Vishesh Gumdal,
Medical Oncologist, Hyderabad
The information provided is for educational purpose only and does not substitute medical advice from your physician. This public awareness initiative is supported by Roche Products (India) Pvt. Ltd.
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