Lung Cancer
The lungs are two sponge-like organs found in the chest cavity. The right lung has three sections, called lobes. The left lung has two lobes. It is smaller because the heart takes up more room on that side of the body. The lungs bring air in and out, taking in oxygen and getting rid of carbon dioxide gas, a waste product of the body. The lining that surrounds the lungs and helps to protect them and to facilitate the sliding motion during breathing is called the pleura. The chest cavity is called the pleural cavity. The windpipe brings air down into the lungs. It divides into tubes called the bronchi, which divide into smaller branches called the bronchioles. At the end of the bronchioles are tiny air sacs known as alveoli. Most lung cancers start in the lining of the bronchi. Less often, cancers begin in the trachea, bronchioles, or alveoli. Lung cancers are thought to develop over a period of many years. First, there may be areas of cancerous changes in the lung. These changes do not form a mass or tumor. They cannot be seen on an x-ray and they do not cause symptoms. But, researchers are studying new tests to detect cancerous changes by analysis of cells in sputum and by viewing the lining of the airways th
During 2001, there will be about 169,500 new cases of lung cancer (90,700 among men and 78,800 among women). They are treated in a different way from the common lung cancers. Other names for SCLC are oat cell carcinoma and small cell undifferentiated carcinoma. They are generally cured by surgery. There will be an estimated 157,400 deaths from lung cancer (90,100 among men and 67,300 among women) in 2001, accounting for 28% of all cancer deaths. However, only 15% of people with lung cancer are diagnosed at this early, localized stage. Carcinoid tumors of the lung account for less than 5% of lung tumors. Although each of the cells is small, they can multiply quickly and form large tumors, and can spread to lymph nodes and other organs such as the bones, brain, adrenal glands, and liver. People with one type of adenocarcinoma, known as bronchioloalveolar carcinoma tend to have a better outlook than those with other types of lung cancer. Lung cancer is a life-threatening disease because it often spreads in this way even before it is detected by x-rays. It is usually found in the outer region of lung. That is because they don't die as easily.
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