One of the biggest obstacles with diagnosing lung cancer is that many patients do not have any lung cancer symptoms until the cancer is in advanced stages. That is why it is very important for people, especially those at high risk, to understand lung cancer symptoms. People must be aware what these symptoms are and see their doctor if they even suspect they may have lung cancer.

Hidden Disease

Lung cancer symptoms do not usually appear in the early stages. Generally, when symptoms appear, they’re related to tumor growth or spread of cancer to other parts of the body. In several cases, the lung cancer is found when a chest x-ray is taken for another reason.

The difficulty with lung cancer is that the cancer has no symptoms in the early stages, but the lung cancer is more difficult to cure when it spreads to other parts of the body or in the high stages.

Even when symptoms do present it can be difficult to notice that they are something more than a chest cold or other common respiratory illness. Many times people ignore them or use over the counter medication to try and treat what they believe is a simple virus.

The Symptoms of Lung Cancer

The symptoms of lung cancer are generally similar to the one you might feel with an infection or virus. Symptoms of lung cancer include:

• Lasting cough

• Pain of chest

• Breath shortness

Lung cancer symptoms can also include coughing up blood, which usually gets attention because it is not a common symptom of a cold or common virus. However, in many cases this is a symptom that comes later in the stage of lung cancer growth.

The best way to catch signs of lung cancer early is to just be aware. Some things to be aware of and watch for are:

• A new cough that suddenly develops, particularly if you smoke or used to smoke.

• A persistent cough that does not go away even with medication.

• Pain in the chest that is dull, yet persistent.

• Wheezing

• Hoarseness

• Recurring respiratory diseases

Some of the reason why lung cancer has a high mortality rate is because it is very difficult to find in the early stages. Signs and symptoms are the major way that people realize they have cancer and when it is not just the symptoms present, it may be impossible to discover the cancer in time for the proper control, treatment, and life saving.