Lung Cancer

Lung cancer is the disease resulting from abnormal growth of cells in the lung tissue. From epithelial cells, this growth usually malignant, can result in infiltration and metastasis to other tissues of the body.
The most common symptoms are shortness of breath, cough, including cough, bloody, and weight loss, [1] as well as chest pain, hoarseness and swelling in the neck and face [2].
Lung cancer is classified into two main types, depending on the size and appearance of the malignant cells: the small cell lung cancer (small) and non-small cell (non-small). Other types are mixed, and metastatic. [3] This distinction determines treatment and so, while the former is usually treated with chemotherapy and radiation, the second tends to be further surgery, [4] and laser photodynamic therapy. [5] The most common cause of lung cancer is smoking, [6] to be 95 percent of patients with lung cancer ex-smokers and smokers. [7] In the non-smokers, the occurrence of lung cancer they resulted from a combination of genetic factors [8] [9] radon gas, [10] asbestos, [11] and air pollution, [12] [13] [14] including secondary smoke (passive smoking). [ 15] [16] The early diagnosis of lung cancer is a condition for greater success in their treatment. In early stages, lung cancer can, in about 20% of cases [17] be treated successfully by surgical resection for cure. However, due to its virulence and the difficulty of early detection in most cases where diagnosis and metastasis occurs, the lung cancer presents with tumors of the liver, pancreas and esophagus, forecasting worse still an incurable disease, with an average life expectancy of approximately 8 months. [18] In Spain, survival has improved from 6% survival at 5 years for cases diagnosed between 1980 and 1985 to 12.4% for diagnosed between 1990 and 1994. [19]
Lung cancer is one of the most serious of the cancers with a higher incidence in humans, responsible for the higher mortality rates in oncology worldwide. Is the leading cause of cancer death in men and third after colorectal and breast cancer in women [20] [21] causing over one million deaths each year in the world. [22] In England United (2004) and the United States (2006) represents the leading cause of cancer death in women and men. In Spain are around 20,000 cases diagnosed annually, accounting for 18.4% of tumors among men (18,000 cases) and 3.2% among women (2,000 cases) [23].