November is Lung Cancer Awareness Month

November is Lung Cancer Awareness Month. Cancer awareness comes in many forms, but here we will talk about prevention. Prevention is action taken to lower the chance of getting cancer. This can be done by decreasing risk factors. A risk factor is something that increases the chance of getting a cancer. There are several risk factors for lung cancer including: tobacco smoke, secondhand smoke and radon exposure.

Tobacco smoke has been linked to almost 90% of lung cancers. If you smoke, there is benefit for quitting. Smokers who quit, decrease their chance of lung cancer compared to those who continue to smoke. Smokers who quit for more than 15 years have an 80 to 90 percent decrease in their chance of lung cancer, compared with people who continue to smoke.

Secondhand smoke comes from breathing in smoke from burning tobacco products and smoke that is exhaled by smokers. Secondhand smoke exposes non-smokers to nicotine and harmful chemicals. For those who have never smoked, secondhand smoke increases their chance of getting lung cancer by 20 to 30 percent.

Radon is a gas that you cannot see, smell or taste. It comes from rocks, soil and groundwater. Radon can enter your home through openings in the foundation. Having your home tested is the only way to know if you have high radon levels. If your home has high radon levels, it can be fixed. Visit ncradon.org or contact the North Carolina Radon Program for more information.

Quitting smoking can be difficult. If you or someone you know would like to quit, talk to a health care provider. You can also contact QuitlineNC at 1-800-QUIT-NOW (1-800-784-8669), a free service to any North Carolina resident who needs help quitting. If you are a current or former smoker, you may qualify for Lung Cancer Screening for early detection. Wilson Medical Center offers advanced technology lung cancer screening with low dose CT scanning for those at risk.

“We encourage all patients at risk of lung cancer to talk with a health care provider to see if screening is right for you,” says Sayeed Hossain, M.D., FACP, FCCP., a pulmonologist at Wilson Medical Center.

This article does not cover all risk factors for lung cancer. There are several resources online if you would like to learn more. These are available through the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Cancer Institute and American Cancer Society.

Learn more about Wilson Medical Center's affiliation with Duke Cancer Network here.