Lung Cancer Prevention

Many people do not have symptoms, or have only vague symptoms, until the disease has progressed significantly. As a result, only 15% of lung cancers are discovered in early stages, when the possibility of curative treatment is greatest. When lung cancer does cause symptoms, they can include:

• Coughing and Shortness of breath (dyspepsia)
• General pain and fatigue
• Chest, shoulder, upper back, or arm pain
• Repeated pneumonia or bronchitis
• Blood coughed up in sputum (hemoptysis)
• Loss of appetite and weight loss
• Hoarseness and Wheezing
• Swelling in the face or neck

Sometimes, symptoms may seem unrelated to the lungs or breathing. Because lung cancer usually is diagnosed in a later stage, the primary cancer may have already spread to the other lung or other parts of the body. Depending upon where the cancer spreads and which organs are affected, symptoms can also include headaches, bleeding, weakness, bone fractures, or blood clots.

Many people with early lung cancer do not have symptoms, so the disease is often not diagnosed until after it has spread. A person who experiences any of the following symptoms listed above.