HB+Cancer+Class+Notes

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 * Late to class, these are kat's notes
 * Lung cancer is the uncontrolled cell growth of tissue in the lungs.
 * Normally, the body maintains a system of checks and balances on cell growth so that cells divide to produce new cells only when needed.
 * When this is disrupted, it leads to uncontrollable cell growth, which leads to the build up of tumors.
 * Lung cancer is responsible for the most cancer deaths in men and women
 * The American Cancer Society estimates that 213,380 new cases of lung cancer in the U.S. will be diagnosed and 160,390 deaths due to lung cancer will occur in 2007.
 * Lung cancer mostly occurs in the elderly
 * Almost 70% of people who get lung cancer are over the age of 65
 * Less than 3% are under the age of 45
 * Causes of cancer?
 * 1) **Smoking**
 * 2) About 90%of lung cancer comes from the use of tobacco
 * 3) Tobacco smoke contains over 4,000 chemical compounds, many of which have been shown to be cancer-causing, or carcinogenic.
 * 4) Two primary carcinogens in tobacco smoke are chemicals known as nitrosamines and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons.
 * 5) **Passive** **Smoking**
 * 6) Inhalation of tobacco smoke is a risk of development of lung cancer
 * 7) **Air Pollution**
 * 8) Air pollution from vehicles, industry, and power plants can raise the likelihood of developing lung cancer in exposed individuals
 * 9) Up to 1% of lung cancer cases are from air pollution
 * There are two types of Lung Cancer
 * 1) Small cell lung cancers (SCLC)
 * 2) Accounts for 20% of lung cancer cases.
 * 3) SCLC are strongly related to cigarette smoking, with only 1% of these tumors occurring in nonsmokers.
 * 4) Non-small cell lung cancers (NSCLC)
 * 5) Most common lung cancer, accounting for about 80% of all lung cancers.
 * Symptoms
 * 25% of people find out they have lung cancer from x-rays
 * Difficulty breathing
 * coughing
 * wheezing
 * coughing up blood
 * chest pain