The Danger of Small Cell Cancer
Small cell cancer of the lungs is most often associated with smoking. It can be very difficult to discover in the early stages and therefore has a high death rate associated with it. Diagnosis of small cell cancer is usually in the later stages when the cancer has already spread. It is a fast spreading cancer that can quickly pop up throughout the body. For this reason, it is one of the most aggressive forms of lung cancer.
Lung cancer usually starts in the bronchi. The actual growth is not completely understood, but it is thought that lung cancer develops over years and they start as precancerous areas within the lungs. The development starts slowly with simply changes in the cells, which can not easily be detected through an x-ray. Tumors usually do not form until much later, which is why it can be very difficult to catch the disease in early stages.
Small Cell Cancer
Small cell cancer of the lungs is very different then non-small cell lung cancer. Only 10 to 15% of all lung cancer diagnosis are small cell. It spreads very quickly, most often before it even causes symptoms. The cells are very quick to grow and can form tumors throughout the body. Most often small cell cancer spreads to the lymph nodes, organs and bones.
Surgery is usually not a treatment options because of the fact that this type of cancer spreads too fast and is generally wide spread throughout the body instead of in one generalize location. Treatment usually includes chemotherapy or radiation.
Small cell cancer is usually caused by smoking. Most non-smokers diagnosed with lung cancer have non-small cell. It is rare for a non-smoker to be diagnosed with small cell cancer.
Prevention
It is wise for smokers to be aware of the common signs that something may be wrong, such as coughing, wheezing, trouble breathing and chest pain. Any subtle symptom should be checked out. It can be almost impossible to catch this type of lung cancer early, but early detection provides a much better success rate and reduces the chance of dying from the disease.
Learning as much as you can is your best tool in fighting this disease. Also you can do everything possible to live a healthy lifestyle and avoid tobacco smoke. It is mainly up to you to be aware and to be persistent with your doctor if you do believe that something may be wrong. While early detection even through blood tests is almost impossible, you can still try everything to ensure that you are healthy and that if you do get small cell cancer, that it is caught as early as possible.
We have additional information on this subject you may be interested in reading: lung cancer stages
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