Lung cancer is a growth of malignant cells in the lungs.
You see, throughout your life the cells in your body continually divide and reproduce. Believe it or
not, every minute of your life this process takes place ten million times. Think about it ... ten
million times a minute! Not only is that incredible, it's a demonstration of how complex your body
really is.
Now, for the most part, this all takes place in an orderly manner as your cells go about doing their
job of meeting the needs of your body. Occasionally, however, a cellular mutation will occur and
rather than maturing and dying as it was intended to do, a cell continues reproducing. This is
cancer ... the uncontrolled reproduction and growth of abnormal cells in the body.
Lung cancer is the growth of these malignant cells in the lungs.
Most often, lung cancer is believed to form in the epithelial lining of the airways, where the
oxygen is extracted from the air we breathe. This is why lung cancer is sometimes referred to as
bronchogenic carcinoma (cancer arising from the bronchia). A relatively small percentage of lung
cancer (10% or less) begins in the pleura, the thin tissue sac that surrounds the lungs. These
cancers are called mesothelioma. The most common form of mesothelioma is linked to exposure to
asbestos. The rarest form of lung cancer begins in the blood vessels or other supporting tissues of
the lungs.
Types of Lung Cancer
There are two main types of lung cancer – small cell lung cancer (SCLC) and non-small cell
lung cancer (NSCLC).
Small cell lung cancer is the less common of the two, which is good, because it's also the more
deadly. Less than one percent of small cell lung cancer is diagnosed in non-smokers. This means that
smoking is the primary culprit behind this type of lung cancer. SCLC is aggressive and fast-moving.
It rapidly metastasizes to other organs, and is often not discovered until the cancer is already
widespread throughout the body.
Non-small cell lung cancer accounts for approximately 80% of diagnosed lung cancer cases. Within
this category of lung cancer, there are three main sub-categories ... squamous cell cancer,
adenocarcinomas, and large cell carcinomas. Sometimes two or even all three can appear together.
Finally, there are some less common types of lung cancer such as bronchial carcinoids (small tumors
that are most often found in people under 40 years of age). These tend to be less aggressive, grow
slowly, and often can be effectively treated.
A Deadly Cancer
Cancer of the lungs is one of the deadliest forms of cancer. This is primarily due to the fact that
lung cancer tends to metastasize early in the process of the disease and is often not discovered
until it's spread. Additionally, when lung cancer does metastasize, it tends to spread to the most
vital yet vulnerable organs of the body. The adrenal glands, the liver, the brain and the bones are
all early targets.
Finally, because the lungs are so susceptible to metastatic cancers from other sources throughout
the body, it's not uncommon to find a cancer in the lungs that is not lung cancer but a metastatic
cancer. These cancers tend to make their home in the peripheral tissues of the lungs rather than the
primary tissues.
