Epidemiology of Lung Cancer

Age and Gender

Whereas lung cancer incidence in men in the United States declined after peaking in the mid-1980s, the pattern in women differed significantly. In women, lung cancer incidence more than doubled between 1975 and 2000. Age-adjusted incidence in women increased on average by 4.1% per year between 1973 and 1990, but during 1990–2000, the average annual increase was only 0.2%. Among men and women, the rates declined during the past

Smoking and lung cancer

In the United States, approximately 85% of all lung cancers are in people who smoke or who
have smoked . Lung cancer is fatal for most patients. The estimated number of deaths of lung
cancer will exceed 1.3 million annually early in the third millennium . Lung cancer is the leading
cause of cancer-related deaths among Americans of both genders, with 174,470 estimated newly
diagnosed cases and 162,460 deaths . The number of deaths due to lung cancer exceeds the

annual number of deaths from breast, colon, and

WHAT IS LUNG CANCER

WHAT IS LUNG CANCER?
Lung cancer develops when normal lung cells sustain genetic damage that eventually leads to uncontrolled cell proliferation. Like all cancers, lung cancer cells have the ability to invade neighboring tissues and spread or metastasize to distant parts of the body. Left untreated, lung cancer eventually causes

WHAT IS CANCER & WHAT CAUSES CANCER

Cancer is a condition caused by the uncontrolled growth of cells. Different kinds of cancer are named according to the type of cell that is growing in an uncontrolled way. Cancer can arise from nearly any part of the body. There are more than 125 different types of

THE LINK BETWEEN THE RESPIRATORY AND CIRCULATORY SYSTEMS

The Respiratory Cycle
The respiratory and circulatory systems have closely related jobs. The work of these two systems is sometimes referred to together as the cardiorespiratory system. The respiratory system is responsible for taking in oxygen and expelling carbon dioxide. However, it is dependent on the circulatory system to distribute the oxygen that has been taken in by the lungs to the body

The lungs

The Lungs
You have two lungs, one on each side of the chest. The top, cone shaped part of the lung that fits under the collarbone is called the apex. The broad, bottom part of the lung that rests on the diaphragm is called the base. Unlike some other paired organs in the body, the two lungs are not identical (see Figure 1). The right lung is normally larger than the left. It is divided into three sections or

THE LUNGS AND RESPIRATORY SYSTEM

Lung cancer affects a life-sustaining system of the body, the respiratory system. The respiratory system is responsible for one of the essential functions of life, breathing. Breathing enables us to take in oxygen and expel carbon dioxide. Every cell in the body depends on oxygen to function. If the supply of oxygen is impaired in any way, the entire body is