Lung Cancer Chemotherapy

Archive for January, 2010

Cancers that can spread from their original locations are called secondary cancers. This process, called metastasizing, moves the cancers through the bloodstream, lymphatic system, or by direct extension to a new location. One or many of the cancerous cells of the primary cancer (where the disease originated) can break off and slip into the bloodstream or lymphatic system to reach other organs.Cancerous cells in the lungs as well can appear there without having originated there; in children, cancers of the lungs usually manifest through this process. Cancer that appears in the lungs but did not originate there is called secondary lung cancer. Even though it affects the lungs, this cancer is named according to the type of cancer it originated from, the primary cancer. For example, breast cancer that spreads to the lungs and becomes a secondary lung cancer would still be considered breast cancer.While nearly every type of cancer has the ability to metastasize and spread to the lungs, some do so more commonly than others. Secondary lung cancer is usually a result of bladder, breast, prostate, or colon cancer. Sarcoma, Wilms tumor and neuroblastoma also tend to migrate to the lungs.In addition to being a disease in itself, ...

What Is Mesothelioma and How is it Contracted?Mesothelomia is a rare form of lung cancer contracted from breathing in or ingesting asbestos fibers. The common source of mesothelioma is from industrial sites where the workers are subject to exposure to mesothelioma. There are several factors that make this disease dangerous. One is that the symptoms of mesothelioma are fairly common and almost indistinguishable from regular lung, cardiac, or digestive disorders, and are thus often misdiagnosed.Another problem with mesothelioma is that the symptoms don't immediately manifest upon inhalation or ingestion of the asbestos fibers. They take anything from 20 to 50 years before becoming apparent, and even then the only way to distinguish them from the symptoms of other, less dangerous disorders is to conduct an x ray.Aside from direct exposure to asbestos, the fibers can also be carried upon the clothes of people working around asbestos, so that anyone they come in contact with can also accidentally breath in the fibers once they become airborne.What Are the Symptoms and Effects of Mesothelioma?The most common symptoms of mesothelioma that hits the lungs and chest is a tight pain around the chest area, difficulty breathing, and loss of stamina. These symptoms are ...