Lung Cancer

Lung Cancer - Overview

A lung is a part of the respiratory system. These lungs are in the chest, placed one on each side of the heart. The right lung has 3 main parts which are called lobes. The left lung is a bit smaller and has only 2 lobes. The lungs are protected and cushioned by a thin layer of covering called the pleura. Lung cancer starts in the cells of the lung when a group of cancer cells cancerous (malignant) tumour grow and destroy the nearby tissue. It can also spread (metastasize) to other organs of the body. When cancer starts in lung cells, it is called as the primary lung cancer.

A Lung cancer treatment is followed by a surgical procedure in which the surgeon which remove all or part of a lung to further removes all the cancerous cells in the tissue. The cells present in the lung sometimes change and no longer grow or behave normally resulting in non-cancerous (benign) tumor such as hamartoma and papilloma. But in some of the cases, changes into the lung cells can cause cancer.

Lung cancers are Broadly classified into non–small cell lung cancer and small cell lung cancer based on the type of cell in which cancer started. Your surgeon will work to remove the lung cancer and a margin of healthy tissue by the following procedures :

Lobectomy when the surgeon removes any part of the lung.
Wedge resection when a small section of lung that contains the tumor along with a margin of healthy tissue is removed.
Pneumonectomy when the surgeon removes the entire lung.
Sleeve resection when the surgeon removes a larger portion of the lung, but not an entire lobe.

Lung Cancer - Symptoms

The common symptoms of lung cancer that an individual experiences are as follows:

Impaired voice or Hoarseness in the voice
Sudden Weight loss and loss of appetite
Coughing up blood
Constant cough
Change in breathing
Shortness of breath
Feeling tired or weak
Abnormal exhalation

Lung Cancer - Pre-Procedure

Before the surgery of lung cancer, your surgeon will recommend the following measures that need to be taken before the surgery starts:

At first a Biopsy will be performed to determine whether a patient has cancer, and if so, what type it is.
The surgeon will then recommend some tests to determine the stage of the tumor. The test generally include blood tests and imaging. The imaging includes computed tomography (CT) scanning of the chest and may also include a bone scan or a PET/CT scan.
Then Mediastinoscopy is done to get a visual of the thoracic cavity which is often done just before surgery to know if cancer has already spread to the lymph nodes between the lungs.
Pulmonary function tests are then performed to determine if the patient will have enough healthy lung tissue left after surgery or not.
Other tests are also done to check the function of the heart and other organs of the body.

Lung Cancer - During Procedure

Lung Cancer treatment in India or lung cancer surgery is generally performed by a team of an experienced surgical oncologist, under general anaesthesia. It normally takes about 4 to 5 hours to perform the whole procedure. A surgeon may operate to remove the cancerous lung tissues present in the lung and tissue in the surrounding areas where cancer may have spread. This sometimes also involves removing a lobe or removing a large segment of the lung through a procedure called a lobectomy. In severe cases, the surgeon also needs to remove the lung entirely.

Lung Cancer - Post-Procedure

Post-lung cancer treatment, the patient is kept under observation and monitored in intensive care (ICU) for a few days. After that the patient is then shifted out of ICU, and the nurses and physiotherapists get the patient moving about as soon as possible, make the patient perform breathing exercises and leg exercises to prevent complications, such as blood clots in the legs or to avoid any kind of chest infections. Regular chest X-rays are performed to ensure that the patient can breathe well. Usually, the patient is allowed to get discharged and go home in about 10 days after the lung removal and 5 to 7 days if he/she undergoes lobectomy.