What IS Lung Cancer...?
Definition:What is Lung Cancer? Lung cancer is cancer that begins in the lungs, the two organs found in the chest that help you breathe. The lungs are made up of areas called lobes. The right lung has three lobes; the left lung has two, so there's room for the heart. When you breathe, air goes through your nose, down your windpipe (trachea), and into the lungs where it spreads through tubes called bronchi. Most lung cancer begins in the cells that line these tubes. There are two main types of lung cancer:
If the lung cancer is made up of both types, it is called mixed small cell/large cell cancer. If the cancer started somewhere else in the body and spread to the lungs, it is called metastatic cancer to the lung. Causes, incidence, and risk factors:Lung cancer is the deadliest type of cancer for both men and women. Each year, more people die of lung cancer than breast, colon, and prostate cancers combined. Lung cancer is more common in older adults. It is rare in people under age 45. Cigarette smoking is the leading cause of lung cancer. The more cigarettes you smoke per day and the earlier you started smoking, the greater your risk of lung cancer. There is no evidence that smoking low-tar cigarettes lowers the risk. Over 85% of lung cancers are related to smoking. Cancer-causing substances (carcinogens) in tobacco smoke damage lung cells. Over time, these damaged cells may develop into lung cancer. However, lung cancer has occurred in people who have never smoked. Secondhand smoke (breathing the smoke of others) increases your risk of lung cancer. According to the American Cancer Society, an estimated 3,000 non-smoking adults will die each year from lung cancer related to breathing secondhand smoke. If you live with a smoker, you have 2 to 3 times the risk of developing lung cancer compared with a person who lives in a nonsmoking environment. About 25% of nonsmokers who develop lung cancer probably get it from being exposed to secondhand smoke. Studies show that men and women have a similar risk of lung cancer.6 But the chemicals in tobacco smoke may affect men and women differently. The following may also increase one's risk of lung cancer:
So...now that you know "What is Lung Cancer"...in the words of Hamilton Berger on TV'S 'Perry Mason': "If you smoke, quit. If you don't smoke, don't start."
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