The Symptoms Of Lung Cancer, Part 2

The Symptoms Of Lung Cancer, Part 2

Lung cancer is mostly associated with tobacco cigarettes. It is thus preventable through quitting smoking an discouraging more people from starting smoking in the first place. Apart from the known symptoms of cancer of the lungs that are related to the respiratory system such as coughing there are other symptoms that appear in other organs. In particular symptoms that do not occur in respiratory system are associated with the spread of the disease to other parts of the body. All cancers have the capability of spreading from the place they initially begin to other places. For example prostate cancer can spread to the bones. Breast cancer can spread to the liver and so on.

One of the symptoms associated with cancer of the lungs and yet not occurring in the respiratory system is swelling in the face, arms, and neck. A patient may also have visible veins on the skin of the chest caused by what is known as superior vena cava syndrome. Further symptoms may include pain in the shoulder, weakening of hand muscles, destruction of bone which might be perceived as bone pain. Patients may also have headaches, weakness, numbness or even paralysis in addition to dizziness, partial loss of vision, unexplained weight loss, yellowing of the skin medically known as jaundice. Fluid in the chest or abdomen and irregular heartbeat and difficulty breathing are also other lung cancer symptoms.

There are other rare symptoms of cancer of the lungs occurring away from the lungs. This includes lumps in or beneath the skin, protrusion of the eyes, eyelid tumors, perforation of the bowel experienced as serve abdominal pain with fever, acute pancreatitis experienced as severe abdominal pain and swings in blood sugar levels. There are also various skin conditions that are associated with some cases of the disease. Doctors believe these conditions are caused by aberrant behavior of white blood cells and their antibodies reacting either to the tumor or substances caused by the tumor. Itching of the skin is also associated with the disease including having chronic read patches and dark patches as well as chronic inflammation of the skin occurring in conjunction with muscle and subcutaneous tissue inflammation. Apart from the skin, lung cancer symptoms may also extend to the patient’s blood.