Dec 21, 2005

Chest X-Rays Can Identify Early Lung Cancer

Screening chest x-ray identifies a considerable number of lung cancers at an early potentially curable period, according to early findings from the leading US study of the efficacy of screening for lung cancer in men and women.

As per the early chest x-rays of 77,465 people in the screening section of the test, 5,991 -- nearly 9 percent -- had results that were considered "suspicious for lung cancer."

Upon advanced testing, 126 persons were detected with lung cancer, say the investigators, 44 percent of the tumors were early stage I cancers.

Prominently, 44 percent of the cancers were in the disease's initial stage, noted lead researcher Dr. Martin Oken of Minnesota's Hubert H. Humphrey Cancer Center.


He pointed out that screening is beneficial on the supposition that it can lead to detection of dangerous lung cancers at an earlier, more localized phase when it is more likely to be curable. In the present study, nearly 50 percent of screening-detected lung cancers were localized."

Lung cancer may not produce any symptoms at the initial period of growth. When a patient starts to experience symptoms, such as a cough that doesn't go away, the cancer is often highly developed and cure is rarely possible.

Many scientists are betting that tests like, spiral CT scan, would prove a better screening tool. A separate government study is under way comparing X-rays with spiral CTs. This $300 test is already is in high demand, as many smokers and former smokers aren't waiting for the evidence from clinical trials.

Scott      

Do You Read All Of Our Cancer Blogs?

Do you read all of the blogs published by medicineworld.org? Many of our bloggers are busy keeping you updated on the various health related topics. We publish the following blogs at this time.

Cancer blog: I manage the cancer blog with lots of help and support form other bloggers. Through this cancer blog my friends and I try to bring stories of hope for patients with cancer. The cancer blog often republishes important blog posts from other cancer related blogs at Medicineworld.org. If you are searching for a blog that covers wide variety of cancer topics, this may be the one for you.

Breast cancer blog: Breast cancer blog is run by Emily and other bloggers and they bring you the latest stories, news and events that are related to breast cancer. Increasing awareness about breast cancer among women and in the general population is the main goal of this breast cancer blog.

Lung cancer blog: Lung cancer blog is managed by Scott with the help of other bloggers. Through this blog Scott and his friends constantly remind the readers about the dangers of smoking. It's a never-ending struggle against this miserable disease with which a social stigma of smoking is associated.

Colon cancer blog: Colon cancer blog is run by Sue and other bloggers. Sue brings a personal touch to the colon cancer blog since her mother died of colon cancer few years ago. She writes about stories, research news and advances in treatment related to colon cancer.

Prostate cancer blog: Prostate cancer is the most common cancer among American men. American Cancer Society estimates that over 230,000 new cases of prostate cancer occur in the United state every year. This important blog about prostate cancer is run by Mark and other bloggers. This blog brings news, stories, and other personal observations related to prostate cancer.

Medicineworld.org publishes a diabetes watch blog and this blog is run by JoAnn other bloggers. This diabetes watch blog brings you the latest in the field of diabetes. This includes personal stories, advances in diagnosis and treatment, and other observations about diabetes. Improving awareness about diabetes is an important mission of this group.

Janet      

Lung cancer
We engage a never-ending daily struggle to understand and defeat the hidden mysteries of cancer. This is a long and laborious fight, but some moments stand out as grim reminders of the severity of the problem and ruthlessness of the enemy. We recently heard about the sad demise of Peter Jennings, who was the news anchor of ABC News for a long time.