Causes, Prevention and Treatment of Lung Cancer - Essay Example

Lung Cancer- Causes And Prevention Causes, Prevention And Treatment Of Lung Cancer Farzeela Faisal Standard Academia Research Writer Lung Cancer Lungs are part of the respiratory system whose function is to supply oxygenated blood while removing carbon dioxide. Lung cancer has become the leading cause of cancer death in today's world yet majority of the lung cancer cases are highly preventable. It is common for those who are engaged in cigarette smoking, as smoking tobacco products in any form is the major cause of lung cancer. Environmental, or second-hand, tobacco smoke is also implicated in causing lung cancer. Beta-carotene which serves as an antioxidant help deactivate free radicals, unstable molecules that are the by-products of cells "burning" oxygen for energy when used by smokers increases the risk of lung cancer and when used by a non-smoker prevents heart diseases. Free radicals can damage the basic structure of cells and thus lead to chronic disease like cancer. (Wellness Guide to dietary supplements, Beta Carotene, http://www.berkeleywellness.com/html/ds/dsBetaCarotene.php)(Ellen Brown, and FDA Consumer, Waging War on Lung Cancer, Volume: 33. Issue: 3, May 1999, Page Number: 7) Causes of Lung Cancer The constant assault of cigarette smoke wears away cilia, the tiny hair like structures that line the lungs' air passages and sweep out foreign material trapped inside by mucus. Without this cleaning mechanism, the lungs are particularly vulnerable to compounds brought into air passages. Most lung cancers crop up in the cells that are directly exposed to inhaled air. People who smoke or who live with a smoker breathe air that may harbor more than 50 cancer -fostering chemicals, including benzopyrene and formaldehyde, as well as a radioactive compound called polonium-2 I 0. One researcher, in the September 1993 edition of the journal Pediatrics, estimates that the lungs of a person who smokes a pack of cigarettes a day, are exposed to as much radiation a year as they would absorb from 250 chest x-rays. (Prevention Best Treating Lung Cancer, Margie Patlak, FDA Consumer. Volume: 29. Issue: 5, June 1995. Page Number: 24) The risk of developing lung cancer increases with the number of cigarettes smoked and the number of years of smoking. People who smoke filtered low-tar cigarettes may have a somewhat lower lung cancer risk than those who smoke regular cigarettes. Cigar and pipe smoking can also boost the risk of developing lung cancer, but because people usually inhale less smoke with this type of tobacco use. The tobacco smoke nonsmokers breathe, also called secondhand smoke, has been classified by the Environmental Protection Agency as one of the most dangerous environmental contaminants. Exposure at high levels to certain compounds like asbestos, nickel, chromium, coal gas, mustard gas, arsenic, vinyl chloride, beryllium, hydrocarbons, ionizing radiation, and the radon byproducts of uranium mining can also cause lung cancer. Some people often feel they are genetically protected from lung cancer as recent studies aimed at the lung cancer are consistent with the molecular and cellular levels, now suggests that early exposure enhances DNA damage and is associated with the induction of DNA alterations in specific chromosomal regions. Prevention of Lung Cancer The treatment plan for lung cancer patients depends on the size, location and type of lung cancer as well as the patient's general health. The three main weapons doctors can wield against lung cancer are surgery, radiation directed at the chest, and chemotherapy with anti- cancer drugs. (PDQ Cancer Information, http://www.acor.org/cnet/62825.html) Surgery involves removing part or the entire lung, depending on the extent of the tumor. Patients recovering from surgery usually need to use an artificial respirator to help them breathe for a few days. Patients with lung conditions that impair breathing, such as emphysema, may not tolerate lung cancer surgery. Radiation therapy is usually given five days a week for several weeks and may cause dry and reddened skin in the treated area, unusual tiredness, or a dry or sore throat that can make swallowing painful. Many products, such as nicotine gum, nicotine sprays, or nicotine inhalers, may be helpful to people trying to quit smoking. Chemoprevention is the use of specific natural or man-made drugs to reverse, suppress, or prevent cancer growth. Chemoprevention is an area of active clinical research but still has not yet become standard therapy. Treatment of the Lung Cancer All common types of lung cancer occur more frequently in smokers. Small cell lung cancer (SCLC) is diagnosed almost exclusively in smokers. This form of lung cancer spreads especially quickly to distant parts of the body. Doctors commonly treat patients with SCLC with a combination of several anti- cancer drugs or with anti- cancer drugs plus radiation to the chest. For a patient who's SCLC does not appear to have spread extensively beyond the lung, chemotherapy following surgical removal of the lung tumor may be an option. Doctors usually treat patients with nonsmall cell lung cancer (NSCLC) not detected in the lymph nodes or other organs with surgery that removes part or the entire cancerous lung. Doctors may also prescribe radiation therapy if patients cannot have surgery because of other medical problems. Doctors usually treat NSCLC patients whose cancer has spread to nearby tissue or lymph nodes with radiation therapy, which is sometimes combined with surgery or chemotherapy. Radiation is also used to temporarily shrink the tumors and relieve symptoms of patients with NSCLC that has spread to distant parts of the body. Such dire statistics may prompt lung cancer patients and their doctors to consider new experimental treatments that are investigational and have not been approved by FDA. Examples of these treatments include chemotherapy and immunotherapies that use cancer vaccines, monoclonal antibodies, or other biologicals to boost or enhance the patient's anti- cancer immune response or to more selectively direct anti- cancer drugs or radiation to tumors. Another new technique called photodynamic therapy selectively kills cancer cells with a compound that makes them die when exposed to laser light brought into the lung via a bronchoscope. Living with Lung Cancer Besides treatment of the cancer itself, progress has been made in the management of the chronic pain that accompanies cancer and in the education of patients and physicians in such techniques as biofeedback, acupuncture, and meditation and the appropriate use of narcotics and other medications. Because of improvements in early detection and treatment, many more people are now living with cancer. Over half of all people with cancer now survive for five or more years. Bibliography Ellen Brown, and FDA Consumer, Waging War on Lung Cancer, Volume: 33. Issue: 3, May 1999, Page Number: 7. (Scientific Reference) Encyclopedia Article, Cancer in Medicine, The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition, Columbia University Press, New York, 2004. (Scientific Reference) Margie Patlak, FDA Consumer, Prevention Best Treating Lung Cancer, and Volume: 29. Issue: 5, June 1995. Page Number: 24. (Scientific Reference) PDQ Cancer Information, http://www.acor.org/cnet/62825.html Wellness Guide to dietary supplements, Beta Carotene, http://www.berkeleywellness.com/html/ds/dsBetaCarotene.php Read More