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Symptoms of Lung Cancer
Often described as a silent killer, lung cancer is a difficult disease to diagnose
while in its early stages, as it does not contain any symptoms at this stage.
As lung cancer takes many years to develop and do not produce symptoms in its
early stages, most cases of lung cancer are diagnosed when a patient is between
55 to 65 years old.
By that point, the lung cancer has progressed to the point that cancerous cells
have broken away and spread to other parts of the body. Consequently, the overall
five-year survival rate for these patients is less than 10%.
However, if lung cancer is found in its early stage where the cancerous have
yet to spread to other organs, the overall five-year survival rate improves
to 35% to 45%.
Although lung cancer symptoms are vague, they can include the following:
- The presence of a chronic cough that doesn’t go away or worsens
- Instances of coughing up blood
- The presence of constant chest pain
- The condition of wheezing, hoarseness, or general shortness of breath
- Repeated problems with pneumonia or bronchitis
- Instances of neck and facial swelling
- Appetite loss or weight loss
- A feeling of general fatigue
- The presence of a fever without a known reason.
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