Coughing for more than three weeks can be a sign of cancer

Information campaign urging people to visit a doctor in case of cough lasts more than three weeks in a row, has borne fruit, as the experts found out. She allowed to diagnose hundreds of cases of lung cancer at a stage when the disease can still be treated.

lung cancer

In the UK, summed up a nationwide information campaign Be Clear on Cancer ("Test yourself on cancer"), which was held for 6 weeks last summer. This initiative encourages people whose cough lasts for more than three consecutive weeks, see a doctor urgently, became part of the Government's efforts in the early detection of cancer, which allows you to save the lives of many patients. It is learned that during the summer campaign, thousands of people turned to doctors and 700 patients were diagnosed with lung cancer .

Many of them have this terrible oncological illness is considered one of the most lethal, discovered at an early stage, which greatly improves the chances of recovery. Still at 300   lung cancer   It was discovered at the stage when the tumor can still be cut. In this case, the patient can expect to reach a relatively long enough.

According to statistics, in the UK are diagnosed each year 38,000 new cases of lung cancer, and more than 90% of them are related to smoking. However, only every 8th patient comes to the doctor in the period when the disease treatment (surgery, radiation, chemotherapy) can give a tangible effect. In most cases, the tumor is already causing lung metastases, and it can only be a palliative.

Although in recent years medicine has progressed far enough in the treatment of various types of tumors, lung cancer remains one of the biggest killers. On average, the patient after the diagnosis of the disease remains five months of life. For comparison, the victims of breast or bowel cancer, the figure is as much as 10 years. (READ MORE)

Treatment and prevention

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