What are the common symptoms of early lung cancer? Introduction to the early symptoms of lung cancer

As the air quality gets worse, people are more likely to get lung diseases. At the same time, the number of people suffering from lung cancer is also increasing, which makes people afraid. However, many people do not know much about lung cancer. Their understanding of the disease is limited to superficial knowledge. They do not know the early symptoms of the disease. Even if they suffer from the disease, they do not know it. Therefore, it is very important for everyone to understand the early symptoms of the disease. Let the experts tell you the early symptoms of lung cancer!

Lung cancer, also known as primary bronchial lung cancer, is a malignant tumor that grows on the bronchial mucosa or alveoli. It is one of the main malignant tumors that seriously threatens human survival. In recent years, its incidence and mortality have continued to rise at an alarming rate, with men significantly more than women, and the peak age is 40-60 years old. It is generally believed that the increase in the incidence of lung cancer is related to epidemiological factors. Smoking, industrial waste gas and air pollution are the main causative factors of lung cancer. In the industrial field, the main pathogenic substances related to lung cancer are: asbestos, radioactive substances, arsenic, chromate, nickel, coal tar and petroleum products.

Common early symptoms of lung cancer include:

(1) Coughs are mostly occasional dry coughs with little or no sputum, and may contain a small amount of white foamy sputum, which often occurs after exertion. The coughing time is irregular and has nothing to do with body position.

(2) Hemoptysis or bloody sputum is caused by rupture of capillaries due to necrosis and ulceration of cancerous tissue. The amount of hemoptysis and the duration of hemoptysis are related to the degree of vascular damage in the cancerous tissue. It is usually persistent, with blood streaks or small blood clots in the sputum. The blood is bright red or dark red and is generally difficult to control with treatment. Hemoptysis or bloody sputum usually contains less blood. In a few cases, the cancer erodes the large blood vessels, which can cause massive hemoptysis.

(3) Chest pain Chest pain usually occurs in the middle or late stages of lung cancer. However, if the tumor is located near the pleura, chest pain may occur earlier and manifest as irregular dull pain or pain. When the tumor directly invades the pleura, there may be sharp chest pain, which worsens when coughing or breathing.

(4) Fever. Lung cancer rarely causes fever in the early stages, but when cancerous tissue necroses, it can cause low or moderate fever, which is ineffective for antibiotic treatment. When central lung cancer with lesions close to the hilum of the lung grows in the bronchus and develops to the point of obstruction or semi-obstruction of the bronchial lumen, it can cause obstructive pneumonia and systemic fever. At this time, the body temperature is generally around 38°C. Antibiotic treatment can reduce the fever, but if the obstructive lesions are not removed, pneumonia can recur.

(5) Joint swelling and pain. The pain mainly occurs in the large joints, mostly the ankle joints, followed by the wrist joints. It is not migratory and has nothing to do with weather changes. Local swelling may occur. X-rays show no other abnormalities except for occasional thickening of the periosteum. Some patients may have rod-shaped fingers (toes). Clinically, these symptoms are called pulmonary osteoarthritis or ectopic growth hormone syndrome. Taking anti-rheumatic analgesics will not improve the entire course of the disease, but once the lesions in the lungs are removed, the symptoms of joint pain will disappear.

(6) Skin changes: A small number of people may experience rash, dermatomyositis, herpes zoster, etc. in the early stages.

(7) Endocrine system disorders: A small number of patients may also experience progressive muscle weakness, muscle atrophy, diabetes, lower limb edema, male breast enlargement, testicular atrophy, etc.

About one-third of early lung cancer patients have no symptoms, and some patients, despite mild early symptoms, do not take them seriously or are misdiagnosed, thus delaying the disease. Therefore, in order to detect early lung cancer patients, it is necessary to conduct large-scale population surveys regularly, especially in factories, mines and cities with high incidence rates, and a survey should be conducted once a year.

Patients aged 40 years and above who (1) have unexplained chest pain and hematuria that has not responded to treatment; (2) have repeated inflammation in the same part of the lung that has not responded well to active anti-inflammatory treatment; (3) have tuberculosis that has suddenly relapsed and worsened after treatment, have inflammatory infiltration in a certain segment or lobe of the lung, or have local emphysema or atelectasis should be highly alert and undergo further examination.