Over 2,340 Victorians are diagnosed with lung cancer every year. Lung cancer occurs most often in adults between the ages of 40 and 70 who have smoked cigarettes for at least 20 years. However, up to nine out of 10 lung cancers are caused by smoking. Lung cancer is the most common cause of death from cancer in Australia. What is lung cancer? The lungs are two organs which are located inside the chest cavity. As we breath in, the air travels down the windpipe (trachea) and moves down two tubes called bronchi, which both end up going to the lung.
The tubes divide into bronchioles and then into tiny air sacs called alveoli, they pass through air and collect the waste gas (carbon dioxide). Lung cancers usually start in the cells lining the airways. How does the disease affect the body? The disease affects the body by preventing the amount of air going into the lungs and not letting waste get out. The disease also starts killing the lung cells which ends up killing the lung and turning other cells into cancer. These cells also spread to other parts of the body and causes other cancers. What are the risk factors that may lead to this disease?
There are many different risk factors that may lead to lung cancer such as: Tobacco smoking Environmental factors such as passive smoking, radon exposure and occupational exposures, such as asbestos* and diesel exhaust A family history of lung cancer Previous lung diseases such as lung fibrosis, chronic bronchitis, emphysema, and pulmonary tuberculosis. *The use of asbestos was banned in Australia at the end of 2003. Not allowing it to be imported, sold, manufacture, used or reused in Australia. Although this is the case people who have worked with it in the past are more likely to develop it than the rest of the population.
Signs & Symptoms Common symptoms of lung cancer include: Persistent cough or a new or changed wheeze (or both) Breathlessness Pains in the chest when coughing or taking a deep breath Recurring pneumonia or chest infections Recurring bronchitis Excessive tiredness (fatigue) Unexplained weight loss. Less common symptoms can include: Hoarse voice Difficulty swallowing Swelling of the face or neck Pleural effusion – fluid around the lungs causing shortness of breath Changes in the shape of your fingers and nails known as ‘finger clubbing’. What population group is most at risk?
The population group that is most at risk is mostly adults and older adults, except lung cancer is something that doesn’t necessarily grow straight away. Some people smoke their wholes lives without developing it until they are an older adult or don’t develop it at all. The graph shown which was conducted by the Australian Bureau of Statistics in 2011, shows that more males have died from lung cancer than females from 1945 to 2008. Rates for men has risen from 11. 3 deaths per 100,000 in 1945 to 74. 8 deaths in 1985, decreasing to 59. 0 deaths per 100,000 in 2008 which could be a result of smoking reduction campaigns.
Rates for women have steadily risen from 3. 5 deaths per 100,000 in 1945 to 33. 4 deaths per 100,000 in 2008 reflecting the continued uptake of smoking by women. Can this disease be treated? The disease can be treated but this disease is divided into stages depending on how much it has spread. This helps the medical staff decided what treatment would be suited for you and sometimes they decided several different treatments would give the best outcome. Different treatment options include: Surgery – to remove the affected part of the lung or an entire lung. This is one of the best options so the cancer doesn’t spread beyond the lung.
Radiotherapy – this treatment uses x-rays to target and kill cancer cells. It is manly used against some early stages of lung cancer and stop cancer spreading further. Chemotherapy – anti-cancer drugs are given to stop cancer cells from multiplying. This treatment is most effective for small cell carcinoma Targeted therapy (biological agents) – use of small molecules, often in tablet form, that may be used after chemotherapy Clinical trials – participation in a clinical trial that investigates the safety and effectiveness of new medications may be offered Can this disease be prevented?
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There are three major things that can prevent lung cancer. These are: Stop smoking: This is if you smoke. The best way to prevent lung cancer is to stop smoking as soon as possible. However long you have been smoking, it is always worth quitting. Every year that you do not smoke, your risk of getting serious illnesses, such as lung cancer, will decrease. After 10 years of not smoking, your chances of developing lung cancer falls to half that of some who smokes.
Having a healthy diet: Research suggests that eating a low-fat, high-fibre diet, including at least five portions a day of fresh fruit and vegetables and plenty of whole grains, can help reduce your risk of lung cancer, as well as other types of cancer and heart disease. Regular Exercise: There is strong evidence to suggest that regular exercise can lower the risk of developing lung cancer and other types of cancer. Adults should do at least 30 minutes a day. How common is Lung Cancer? Lung cancer is the most common cause to death in both men and women throughout the world.
Statistics gathered in 2011 according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics show that about more than 8,000 Australians are diagnosed with lung cancer each year and more than 7,000 Australians die from lung cancer, making it the fifth most common cancer in Australia. Lung cancer is mostly a disease of the elderly; almost 70% of people diagnosed with lung cancer are over 65 years of age, while less than 3% of lung cancers occur in people under 45 years of age.
Government Initiative The government initiative for lung cancer is ‘Quit’ (which is aimed at people who smoke tobacco rather than get the illness due to other factors) is a campaign to get people who smoke to quit so they can have a longer, healthier and happier life with their family and friends.
The campaign has a website which offers people information on why they should quit, what benefits they will achieve by quitting, how smoking affects the people around you and steps on how to quit. They also give other information like different numbers you can call to get you through the hard times or to steps on how to quit and also coping strategies that will help you overcome your addiction. The campaign founded by the government has many ads on TV which are very confronting and turn people away from smoking at all.
Also, since 1 December 2012 all forms of branding logos, colours, and advertising texts are banned from cigarette pack designs. They were replaced with drab dark brown packets and graphic images of smoking-related images(such as the few examples in the picture below) to try to reduce the smoking population of Australia to 10% by 2018 from 15% in 2012.
Australia is currently the only country in the world to have plain packaging cigarette packs but that is set to change when Ireland decided to follow Australia’s by introducing plain packaging in 2014.
Resources http://en. wikipedia. org/wiki/Lung_cancer http://www.cancervic. org. au/about-cancer/cancer_types/lung_cancer#what-is http://www. betterhealth. vic. gov. au/bhcv2/bhcarticles. nsf/pages/Lung_cancer http://www. quitnow. gov. au/ http://www. worksafe. vic. gov. au/safety-and-prevention/health-and-safety-topics/asbestos http://canceraustralia. gov. au/affected-cancer/cancer-types/lung-cancer http://www. abs. gov. au/ausstats/abs@. nsf/Lookup/4841.
0Chapter42011 http://www. medicinenet. com/lung_cancer/page2. htm http://www. abs. gov. au/ausstats/abs@. nsf/Lookup/4841. 0Chapter42011 http://en. wikipedia. org/wiki/Tobacco_packaging_warning_messages#Australia.