Lung cancer is one of the most common malignant tumors. In recent years, the incidence rate and death rate of lung cancer are rapidly increasing, and it has become the most threatening malignant tumor to human health and life. The key to improve the cure rate of lung cancer is early diagnosis and early surgical treatment, while early diagnosis of lung cancer is the key to improve the survival rate of lung cancer.
I. Early signs of lung cancer
Early clinical symptoms of lung cancer are not specific, which requires people to be alert, especially when the following conditions occur, they must pay enough attention to.
1.Long-term recurrent cough: long-term recurrent cough over 45 years old especially for patients with smoking history; sudden onset of irritating cough over 40 years old that lasts for more than 2 weeks and is ineffective after active treatment; change of cough nature in patients with chronic cough.
2. Sputum blood: intermittent recurrent blood in sputum. If sputum blood persists for more than several months, even if no abnormality is seen on X-ray chest film, it should be given sufficient attention.
3. Other.
(1) Persistent chest pain of unknown origin.
(2) Recurrent lung infections at the same site, especially restrictive pneumonia.
(3) Incurable pulmonary abscess with obvious symptoms as well as coughing up large amounts of pus sputum with no obvious efficacy of anti-inflammatory treatment.
(4) Unexplained joint pain in the extremities and enlarged fingertips.
(5) Pulmonary tuberculosis in the process of effective anti-TB treatment, the lesions have stabilized, and then suddenly appear new lesions.
In particular, high-risk groups such as long-term smokers, industrial and mining workers, long-term exposure to radioactive substances and those with a family history of tumors should be thoroughly examined every six months to one year.
Diagnosis of lung cancer
The diagnosis of lung cancer includes the following aspects.
1. Clinical manifestations: Patients with the above mentioned early signs of lung cancer should go to hospital in time. Especially for middle-aged and old men who smoke, they should seek timely medical consultation when they have symptoms such as cough, blood in sputum and shortness of breath.
2.Auxiliary examination.
(1) Chest X-ray: It is one of the most common and easiest means to diagnose lung cancer.
(2) Chest CT: CT is the preferred imaging means for lung diseases, which can detect lesions that are difficult to be detected by general X-ray examination.
(3) Bronchoscopy: It is an important measure to diagnose lung cancer. After bronchoscopy has been widely used in clinical practice, the diagnosis rate of lung cancer, especially central type lung cancer, has been improved significantly. Bronchoscopy can directly detect bronchial lesions, and biopsy pathology can be performed to clarify the diagnosis and determine the histological type.
(4) Other cytological examinations
C. Treatment of lung cancer
1.Surgical treatment is the main treatment
Surgery is the only treatment method that can cure lung cancer. It not only completely removes all lesions and suspicious lesions in the chest cavity, but also provides guidance for the next step of treatment, whether radiotherapy or chemotherapy is needed. Surgical resection is applicable to most lung cancer patients. Any non-small cell lung cancer that has not been found to have distant metastases, is in good general condition and has tolerable cardiopulmonary function should be treated surgically. Early stage of small cell lung cancer should also be actively treated by surgery. For tumors that are highly suspicious or cannot be excluded from lung cancer (lack of pathological details), those who are in a position to do so should also undergo surgery to clarify the diagnosis and make corresponding treatment.
2.Other adjuvant treatment
They include Chinese medicine treatment, immunotherapy and gene therapy. Chinese medicine plays an adjuvant therapeutic role in cancer treatment; immunotherapy is still in the exploratory stage, and gene therapy is still in the clinical trial stage and needs to be further researched and improved.
3.New direction of lung cancer treatment
Targeted therapy is a relatively new treatment method for lung cancer, which can be located at specific molecular targets of tumorigenesis. Unlike traditional chemotherapy, these drugs only attack the specific signaling pathways activated inside the tumor without affecting the normal tissue cells around the tumor, thus avoiding the killing of normal cells. Just like cruise missiles in modern warfare, they can automatically locate the enemy and kill cancer cells precisely. Therefore, targeted therapy is less toxic and more effective than traditional tumor treatment. Studies have confirmed that the survival rate of patients who take targeted therapy after surgery is three times that of patients who receive chemotherapy, and for some patients, targeted therapy can also be administered before surgery, which is called targeted neoadjuvant therapy and is a newer treatment modality.
The treatment method of lung cancer depends on the patient’s general condition, lesion location, size, scope, pathological type, disease duration and whether the tumor has metastasized and spread. The choice of treatment method determines the treatment effect, survival rate and quality of life of lung cancer patients. In recent years, combination therapy has become the general treatment trend. Patients may receive more than one type of treatment, such as chemotherapy in relation to surgery, which can be administered not only before or after surgery, but also before radiotherapy, or simultaneously with or after radiotherapy. Therefore, comprehensive evaluation, accurate diagnosis, and individualized treatment will be the key to prolong the survival time and improve the quality of life for lung cancer patients.