01 Jan 2011
Lung cancer is usually diagnosed only in its advanced stages when the disease is more difficult to treat. But by immediately quitting smoking, a major cause of this cancer, a lung cancer patient can still experience significant benefits even at a late stage.
Treatment of lung cancer includes surgery to remove the cancerous growths and/or chemo- or radiotherapy to kill cancerous cells that have spread around the body.
A lung cancer patient who has quit smoking could face fewer complications during surgery and responds better to treatments, among other benefits, said Dr Kenneth Chan, Senior Consultant, Department of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, Singapore General Hospital (SGH).
“Patients are able to function better in their daily lives and go through surgery with fewer complications. Some studies also suggest that these patients respond better to chemotherapy,” he said. In addition, the risk of developing other smoking- related illnesses such as heart disease and stroke is reduced.
The damage that smoking does to the lungs cannot be reversed, but by quitting smoking, the deterioration of the lung function can be slowed to the rate associated with normal ageing, instead of continuing at an accelerated rate.
Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer-related deaths in Singapore. On average, Singapore sees about 1,000 new cases of lung cancer every year.
About 85 per cent of lung cancer cases in Singapore are smoking-related, with a small percentage of patients developing the disease from long-term exposure to second-hand smoke and cancer-causing chemicals such as asbestos. People who live or work with smokers and who breathe in second-hand smoke for a long period, are two to three times more likely to develop lung cancer than smokers, said Dr Chan.
Indeed, second hand smoke is more dangerous as the non-smoker directly breathes in the toxic chemicals. These chemicals can linger in the air or on furniture for a long time.
Lung cancer is often not detected until it is in an advanced stage because its “symptoms may not occur till very late in the course of the disease”, said Dr Chan.
People who experience symptoms such as a cough that doesn’t go away, chest pain, weight loss, breathlessness or blood-streaked sputum should seek medical attention, said Dr Chan.
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Dept of Respiratory & Critical Care Medicine
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