Cough and short breaths are generally common symptoms of lung cancer. Initially, the cough and short breaths will be reasonable, and as the lung cancer will become more severe, the same cough and short breaths will turn to its critical stage. Otherwise, other symptoms depend on the part of the lung that is affected by lung cancer.
Early warning signs of lung cancer
The lungs have few nerve endings due to which in the initial stages of lung cancer, rarely any symptoms are exposed and when lung cancer shows any signs it varies from person to person which commonly include symptoms like
- A new cough develops, or the existing cough worsens.
- Blood can come out from mouth while coughing
- Short breathes started in regular day to day activity
- Chest pain, shoulder pain both gets worse while laughing, taking breaths and coughing
- Irregular weight loss
- You will stop feeling hungry. Appetite Starts getting lost.
- Weakness and tiredness increase without working workout or any activity.
- Bronchitis or pneumonia or other lung infection becomes general and won’t go easily
- Wheezing and hoarseness
- Face and neck will start swelling
- Chewing and swallowing gets complicated due to pain
- Clubbing occurs i.e., the appearance of fingers changes.
Early stages of lung cancers don’t show any full, proven symptoms. More likely, these symptoms can be seen in some lung infections or other body problems. Therefore, it is still advisable when you see the symptoms, and then you must visit the doctor as a precaution.
Advance lung cancer symptoms
When lung cancer reaches its advanced stage, it spreads across the whole body and affects bones, liver, or brain too. Now since other parts are also included in the lung cancer, symptoms are visible through these parts as well.
- People start to develop bone pain frequently
- Swelling of body parts like face, arms, and neck
- Numbness and dizziness start. The weakness of the body increases
- Jaundice is persistent
- Lumps develop in the collar bone region or neck region
As we have discussed earlier Lung cancer is of two types, small cell lung cancer and non-small cell lung cancer, both show different symptoms of lung cancer.
Non-small cell lung cancer symptoms
- Coughing starts without any cause
- Blood coughing starts, or red color phlegm produces while coughing
- Pain in chest and shoulder pain starts
- Short breaths and other breathing difficulties
- Weakness and fatigue
- Infection in upper respiratory symptoms becomes common
- Bone pain also starts
- Other body parts may affect.
Neurological related symptoms
Head and seizures can occur. The creation of the tumor begins to press against the nerve cells.
Lumps
When lung cancer turns to its advanced stages, it reaches to lymph nodes as well. Sometimes, Timor’s on the skin is developed, which clearly visible.
Horner syndrome
Horner syndrome is related to nerve damage. As lung cancer reaches its advanced stages, tumors may cause damage to nerve cells. The symptoms are mostly visible to one side of the face like drooping jaw line.
Paraneoplastic syndrome
The paraneoplastic syndrome refers to a process in which cancer cells make chemical reactions which trigger out other response. The symptoms of paraneoplastic syndrome include high blood calcium levels.
Small cell lung cancer symptoms
Mostly the signs are not present until the small cell lung cancer reaches the advanced stages, and the symptoms are driven very critically as the disease spreads.
Persistence symptoms are same as like in an initial stage like:
- Coughing
- Dizziness and hoarseness
- Short breathes
- Wheezing
- Weight lose
- Weakness
- Tiredness
Symptoms of advanced small cell lung cancer
- Severe headaches
- Regular Short breathes in casual activities
- Jaundice
- Bone pain
- Neck lumps
Non-Small cell lung cancer can cause paraneoplastic syndrome. The symptoms of that paraneoplastic syndrome, are like muscle cramps, muscle weakness clubbing i.e., the elevation of calcium, which can change the shape of the finger.