Lung cancer is a serious disease characterized by the presence of symptoms such as coughing, hoarseness, shortness of breath and weight loss.
Despite the severity, lung cancer has a cure when identified early, and its treatment, which can be done with surgery, radiotherapy or chemotherapy, can last for months or years. However, the most common is that lung cancer is discovered early in the disease, which develops very fast, with a lower chance of cure.
Life time with lung cancer
Lung cancer is the type of cancer that kills most in the world, being more common in smokers, which is the cause of almost 90% of cases. However, it can also occur in patients who are exposed to cigarette smoke constantly or to chemicals known to be carcinogenic, such as Arsenic, Carbon or Lead, for example.
Life expectancy after the discovery of lung cancer ranges from 7 months to 5 years, depending on several factors, such as general health status, type of lung cancer and initiation of treatment. Even when this type of cancer is discovered at the initial stage (T1 = tumor ≤ 3 cm in diameter) the chances of cure are not very large, because it has a great possibility of returning, which happens in about half of the cases.
Treatment for lung cancer
Treatment for lung cancer will depend on the severity of the situation, with the doctor deciding whether to undergo surgery, radiotherapy or chemotherapy or the combination of the three procedures, and the addition of biological therapy.
Generally, cancer is treated in referral centers such as the National Cancer Institute (INCA) but in more advanced cases of the disease, and depending on the age of the patient, the doctor can only indicate palliative care, to eliminate pain and discomfort, but without hope to cure the disease.
See how lung cancer treatment is done.
The mean time from onset of symptoms to the diagnosis of this disease is approximately 2 months, and from onset of symptoms to the start of oncologic treatment is another 2 months.
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