Tuesday, June 30, 2009

Discover What Stage 4 Lung Cancer Is

By Anne Durrell

Non-small cell lung cancer is defined in stages. The stage of the cancer diagnosis tells the doctor and the patient how advanced the cancer is.

Stage 4 lung cancer is the most advanced stage of non-small cell lung cancer. When cancer has reached stage 4, it can mean serious treatment is needed and the prognosis for survival is much lower than it is at earlier stages of the disease.

Diagnosis

Diagnosis of any type of lung cancer can be done through several methods. It is not clear if screening is a good process for diagnosis, but some doctors still use it in hopes that it can catch cancer at earlier stages.

Lung Cancer Tests include:

* Picturing

* Sputum Cytology

* Biopsy

Lung Cancer Staging

When a lung cancer has been diagnosed, the doctor will then work to find out what stage the cancer is at. Staging the lung cancer helps to find out the course of therapy as well as give a prognosis or outlook to the lung cancer patient what to hope.

Below are the stages of non-small cell lung cancer:

Stage 1: Cancer is exist in the lung tissue, but is not spreading.

Stage 2: Cancer is spreading to chest wall or lymph nodes

Stage 3 Lung Cancer: Stage 3 is broken into 2 different categories. Stage 3 A is where the cancer has spread to the lymph nodes in the center of the chest. Stage 3B is where the cancer has spread to the heart, blood vessels, throat area or other places within the chest.

Stage 4: stage 4 lung cancer is the most danger stage. At this instant, the lung cancer has spread beyond the chest area as well as into another areas or organs, such as the brain or the bones.

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