Symptoms of Lung Cancer

If you are either a smoker or have a history of smoking, it is important to check with doctor if you note any symptoms which are unusual for you such as such as knee pain, may be an early symptom of lung cancer. General symptoms, such as fatigue, decreased appetite, or even depression should advise you to seek a physician’s guidance.

The growth of the cancer and invasion of lung tissues and surrounding tissue may interfere with breathing, leading to symptoms such as persistent or intense coughing, pain in the chest shoulder, or back from coughing, changes in color of the mucus that is coughed up from the lower airways (sputum), difficulty breathing and swallowing, hoarseness of the voice, harsh sounds while breathing (stridor), chronic bronchitis or pneumonia, coughing up blood, or blood in the sputum.

Additional symptoms can present themselves in the newly affected area if the lung cancer spreads, or metastasizes. If cancer spreads to the brain, it may cause a number of neurologic symptoms which includes vertigo, headaches, or seizures. Besides, the liver may become enlarged and cause jaundice and bones can become painful, brittle, and broken.

It is also possible for the cancer to infect the adrenal glands resulting in hormone level changes. A common paraneoplastic syndrome associated with SCLC is the production of a hormone called adrenocorticotrophic hormone (ACTH) by the cancer cells, leading to oversecretion of the hormone cortisol by the adrenal glands. The most frequent paraneoplastic syndrome seen with NSCLC is the production of a substance similar to parathyroid hormone, resulting in elevated levels of calcium in the bloodstream.

Besides that, there are some non-specific symptoms which seen with lung cancers such as weight loss, fever, weakness, fatigue and swelling in the neck or face.

Symptoms of Lung Cancer
Cancer Location	Symptom
Primary tumor	Chest pain (increases with breathing in some cases)
	Cough (sometimes bloody)
	Fluid in the lungs (pleural effusion)
	Pneumonia (often repeated cases)
	Shortness of breath
	Wheezing
Local spread of the tumor	Changes in voice (hoarse)
	Changes in pupil dilation
	Trouble swallowing
	Strange sound when breathing (sometimes called stridor)
	Fluid accumulation in the lungs
Distant spread of the tumor	Weakness and/or numbness
	Trouble walking
	Pain in the bones
	Visual troubles
	Any neurological problem that has no other cause