What are the symptoms of advanced small cell lung cancer? If you have these symptoms, you should seek medical attention as soon as possible

Small cell lung cancer has two stages: limited stage and extensive stage. The treatment effect of limited stage is better than that of extensive stage. In the late stage of small cell lung cancer, the tumor will compress the respiratory tract and esophagus, leading to symptoms such as dysphagia, hemoptysis, pleural effusion, and some accompanying symptoms.

Small cell lung cancer is a malignant tumor of the lungs, which mainly originates from the bronchial mucosa or glands. Patients with small cell lung cancer have a poor prognosis and a high mortality rate. Once it develops into the late stage, the consequences are disastrous. So what are the symptoms of late-stage small cell lung cancer?
1. Limited and extensive stages of small cell lung cancer <br/>Unlike other cancers, small cell lung cancer is mainly divided into limited and extensive stages. The limited stage mainly refers to the tumor location being limited to one or the same side of the chest cavity and hilum, bilateral mediastinum and ipsilateral supraclavicular area, and there is no malignant pericardial effusion and pleural effusion. Tumors in the limited stage have a relatively small growth range and are easy to cure. Tumors in the extensive stage mean that there are multiple metastatic lesions, metastatic lymph nodes, etc. And the range is too large, and patients generally cannot tolerate radical radiotherapy. The advanced stage of small cell lung cancer, which is generally understood to be the extensive stage, is a period that is difficult to cure.
2. Late symptoms of small cell lung cancer <br/>Patients with small cell lung cancer may experience coughing symptoms in the early stages, mostly irritating dry coughs, choking coughs, etc., accompanied by a small amount of sputum. In the later stages, 25%-50% of patients will also experience hemoptysis and blood in sputum, and severe hemoptysis will occur in patients with severe erosion. About 25% of patients will experience symptoms such as dyspnea and asthma, and the patients at this time already have tracheal obstruction. If necrotic tumor tissue can also cause some obstructive pneumonia and lead to fever, this situation can no longer be treated with antibiotics. The tumor compresses the pleura, causing chest pain, pleural effusion, etc., and tumor invasion can also cause difficulty in swallowing.
3. Symptoms associated with small cell lung cancer <br/>In the late stage of small cell lung cancer, in addition to the symptoms caused by lung lesions, cancer cell metastasis may also occur. Such as bone metastasis, central nervous system metastasis, adrenal gland metastasis, liver metastasis, lymph node metastasis, etc. Once metastasis occurs, it is necessary to consider multiple factors for radiotherapy and chemotherapy, and adopt a reasonable treatment plan according to the situation. In addition to the above-mentioned metastatic extrathoracic manifestations, there are also some non-metastatic extrathoracic manifestations. Such as: Cushing's syndrome, carcinoid syndrome, inappropriate antidiuretic hormone secretion, nervous system paraneoplastic syndrome, etc.
The treatment effect of small cell tumors in the late stage is poor and the prognosis is poor. Therefore, once early symptoms of cough appear, you need to see a doctor as soon as possible to avoid delay.