Lung Cancer - A Look at the Numbers

It is a known fact that lung cancer is the second leading cause of death and the leading cause of cancer death in both sexes in the West. He makes about 30% of all deaths from cancer.

The sad reality is that many of these deaths could have prevented - fully 85% of all lung cancers are caused by smoking. This includes those who breathe in second-hand smoke from others in the vicinity. If all were to quit smoking, would reduce the incidence of lung cancerdramatically.

After smoking, radon exposure is the second leading cause of lung cancer in America. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency estimates that about 21,000 deaths are caused each year by radon.

Among the different ethnic groups, the incidence of lung cancer is highest among African-Americans. The reason for this is a high cultural tendency in this group for taking up the habit of smoking.

This is also one of the deadliest cancers around. To give somecomparative statistics, the five-year survival rate of colorectal cancer is 62% and 87% for breast cancer. The corresponding figure for prostate cancer is 98%. In sharp contrast is the five-year survival rate for lung cancer, a low 15%.

One reason for this low survival is that lung cancer tends to be diagnosed at a very late stage of their cycle - usually during the first stage 3 or stage 4 By this time the cancer has spread to other parts of the body and has affected many vital organs.This reduces the probability of survival.

There is a prevailing myth that a smoker will return to normal lung Fifteen years after he stops smoking and cancer at this point, his chances of lung cancer, the same as for a non-smoker. The reality is that a smoker, the lung is never quite normal. However, it is true that his chances of lung cancer from dropping over time, although it probably never drops to the level of a person whoremained smoke-free throughout his life.

This is evidenced by the fact that, although existing smokers represent about 40% of all new cases of lung cancer, former smokers confirms full account for 50% of these cases.

Studies show that former smokers have about 9 times more likely to die of lung cancer, but only those who never smoked compared. Smokers are over 23 times more likely from the disease than people who die never smoked.

The figures are slightly lower for women- Women, former smokers have 5 times the odds of dying from lung cancer in smokers compared to never. And smokers are 13 times more likely to die from this disease.

It is obvious that prevention is the best policy when it comes to lung cancer. And avoid the path to this disease is not at all or at least smoke stop smoking at the earliest.