Early detection key to lung cancer treatment
Published: 14 Jan 2018
Lung cancer has been known to affect long-term smokers. However, doctors have recently seen a rise in middle-aged non-smokers diagnosed with lung cancer. Associate Professor John Tam at the Department of Surgery in NUS Medicine, and Senior Consultant at the Division of Surgical Ontology (Thoracic Surgery), National University Cancer Institute Singapore (NCIS), suggested that air pollution may have been a contributing factor based on clinical studies.
Continual improvements in medicine have helped with early detection of lung cancer, simultaneously introducing less invasive treatment methods. Assoc Prof Tam advised that patients who have symptoms such as chronic coughs that last more than three months, breathlessness, long-term pain in the chest areas and weight loss, should seek medical attention. He also added that early stage lung cancer can be treated with minimally invasive surgery, and patients may be able to be discharged within three to four days.
News Coverage
