Some basic facts of lung cancer

It is a well known fact that smokers make up 90% of lung cancer cases. So why do smokers still smoke, just like my neighbour Ah Beng who smokes like a chimney 24/7? Beats me. Maybe they didn't know the perils of lung cancer, yet.

One good news for smokers is that only 10-20% of smokers will eventually develop lung cancer in their lifetime. Researchers are still finding out the reasons why some smokers could end up with lung cancer and why some did not. Luck, perhaps? Definitely not. Researchers blame it on the genes. Well, if smokers do not end up with lung cancer, then they will eventually end up with COPD (Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease), Buerger's disease, bronchiolitis, oral cancer, Crohn's disease, peptic ulcer, ulcerative colitis, bla bla bla bla............

The sad thing is that non smokers are not completely safe from developing lung cancer. The remaining 10% of lung cancer cases are due to exposure to asbestos, radiation, arsenic, radon gas, mustard gas, air pollution and the list goes on.

The symptoms of lung cancer are similar to any other lung infection such as coughing. So, that makes the diagnosis difficult. Often by the time the patients found that they have it, it is already too late because the tumour grows very fast and painlessly unbeknown to you.

Compared to other types of cancer, lung cancer has a very poor prognosis. The survival rate is only 13% even with treatment. Furthermore, the treatment is not cheap. The cost of the treatment can already buy you one nice imported Japanese car in Malaysia.

Where do I get my sources from? The Merck Manual and two close confidant who had personally known two lung cancer patients. The said patients were non smokers and they did not survive.

Want to live longer? Just go to Bama county in Guangxi Province of China. The residents in Bama seem to live over some 100 years and some of them reported that they have never been to hospitals. Go read some news from The Star.
http://thestar.com.my/lifestyle/story.asp?file=/2010/8/16/lifefocus/6683534&sec=lifefocus

Last reminder....don't smoke!