Symptoms of Lung cancer

List of symptoms of Lung cancer:

The list of signs and symptoms mentioned in various sources for Lung cancer includes the 26 symptoms listed below:

• Chronic coughing - a common early symptom
• Coughing up blood
• Worsening cough
• Chronic chest pain
• Fever
• Shortness of breath
• Wheezing
• Hoarseness
• Chest pain
• Recurrent pneumonia
• Recurrent bronchitis
• Swollen neck
• Swollen face
• Loss of appetite
• Weight loss
• Tiredness
• Weakness
• Fatigue
• Some possible symptoms of spread of lung cancer:
  • Diaphragm paralysis
  • Breathing difficulty
  • Fluid retention in upper body
  • Facial swelling
  • Neck swelling
  • Upper body swelling
  • Pleural effusion

Note that Lung cancer symptoms usually refers to various symptoms known to a patient, but the phrase Lung cancer signs may refer to those signs only noticable by a doctor.

More ways to research these symptoms: To research other symptoms use the symptom center, or to research causes of more than one symptom in combination, try our multi-symptom search.

Research More About Lung cancer

Do I have Lung cancer?

• Lung cancer: Introduction
• Lung cancer: Diagnostic Testing to confirm diagnosis
• Home Diagnostic Testing
• Alternative diagnoses and misdiagnosis for Lung cancer
• Failure to Diagnose Lung cancer
• Hidden Causes of Lung cancer
• How serious is it?
• Treatments for Lung cancer
• More about Lung cancer

Home Diagnostic Testing

Home medical tests related to Lung cancer:

• Colon & Rectal Cancer: Home Testing
  • Home Colorectal Cancer Tests
  • Home Fecal Occult Bleeding Tests
• Home Lung Function Tests

Wrongly Diagnosed with Lung cancer?

The list of other diseases or medical conditions that may be on the differential diagnosis list of alternative diagnoses for Lung cancer includes:

• Pneumonia
• Tuberculosis
• Metastatic cancer
• Benign pulmonary nodule
• Lymphoma

See the full list of 16 alternative diagnoses for Lung cancer

More about symptoms of Lung cancer:

More information about symptoms of Lung cancer and related conditions:

• Other diseases with similar symptoms and common misdiagnoses
• Tests to determine if these are the symptoms of Lung cancer
• Symptoms that may be caused by complications of Lung cancer
• Underlying causes of Lung cancer
• Associated conditions for Lung cancer
• Risk factors for Lung cancer

Other Possible Causes of these Symptoms

Click on any of the symptoms below to see a full list of other causes including diseases, medical conditions, toxins, drug interactions, or drug side effect causes of that symptom.

• Breathing difficulty - see all causes of Breathing difficulties
• Chest pain - see all causes of Chest pain
• Chronic chest pain - see all causes of Chronic chest pain
• Chronic coughing - see all causes of Severe cough
• Coughing up blood - see all causes of Coughing blood
• Facial swelling - see all causes of Face swelling
• Fatigue - see all causes of Fatigue
• Fever - see all causes of Fever
• Fluid retention in upper body - see all causes of Abdominal swelling
• Hoarseness - see all causes of Hoarse
• Loss of appetite - see all causes of Poor appetite
• Neck swelling - see all causes of Neck swelling
• Pleural effusion - see all causes of Pleural effusion
• Recurrent bronchitis - see all causes of Bronchitis
• Recurrent pneumonia - see all causes of Pneumonia
• Shortness of breath - see all causes of Shortness of breath
• Swollen face - see all causes of Face swelling
• Swollen neck - see all causes of Neck swelling
• Tiredness - see all causes of Tiredness
• Upper body swelling - see all causes of Swelling symptoms
• Weakness - see all causes of Weakness
• Weight loss - see all causes of Weight loss
• Wheezing - see all causes of Wheezing
• Worsening cough - see all causes of Cough

Medical Books Online about Lung cancer

Medical Books Excerpts Excerpts of published medical book chapters related to Lung cancer are available from published medical books for more detailed information about Lung cancer.

Copyright notice for book excerpts: Copyright © 2008 Lippincott Williams & Wilkins. All rights reserved.

Related videos for Lung cancer

Patient Surveys for Lung cancer

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Symptoms of Lung cancer: Online Medical Books

16 MEDICAL BOOKS ONLINE! Review excerpts from medical books online, free, without registration, for more information about the symptoms of Lung cancer.

Lung cancer: Signs and symptoms
(Professional Guide to Diseases (Eighth Edition))

Because early-stage lung cancer usually produces no symptoms, this disease is usually in an advanced state at diagnosis. These late-stage symptoms commonly lead to diagnosis:

❑Epidermoid and small cell carcinomas — smoker's cough, hoarseness, wheezing, dyspnea, hemoptysis, and chest pain

❑ Adenocarcinoma and large cell carcinoma — fever, weakness, weight loss, anorexia, and shoulder pain.

In addition to their obvious interference with respiratory function, lung tumors may also alter the production of hormones that regulate body function or homeostasis. Clinical conditions that result from such changes are known as hormonal paraneoplastic syndromes:

❑ Gynecomastia may result from large cell carcinoma.

❑ Hypertrophic pulmonary osteoarthropathy (bone and joint pain from cartilage erosion due to abnormal production of growth hormone) may result from large cell carcinoma and adenocarcinoma.

❑ Cushing's and carcinoid syndromes may result from small cell carcinoma.

❑ Hypercalcemia may result from epidermoid tumors.

Metastatic signs and symptoms vary greatly, depending on the effect of tumors on intrathoracic and distant structures:

❑ bronchial obstruction: hemoptysis, atelectasis, pneumonitis, dyspnea

❑ cervical thoracic sympathetic nerve involvement: miosis, ptosis, exophthalmos, reduced sweating

❑ chest wall invasion: piercing chest pain, increasing dyspnea, severe shoulder pain, radiating down arm

❑ esophageal compression: dysphagia

❑ local lymphatic spread: cough, hemoptysis, stridor, pleural effusion

❑ pericardial involvement: pericardial effusion, tamponade, arrhythmias

❑ phrenic nerve involvement: dyspnea, shoulder pain, unilateral paralyzed diaphragm, with paradoxical motion

❑ recurrent nerve invasion: hoarseness, vocal cord paralysis

❑ vena caval obstruction: venous distention and edema of face, neck, chest, and back.

Distant metastasis may involve any part of the body, most commonly the central nervous system, liver, and bone.

READ BOOK EXCERPT ONLINE »

Malignant spinal neoplasms: Signs and symptoms
(Professional Guide to Diseases (Eighth Edition))

Extramedullary tumors produce symptoms by pressing on nerve roots, the spinal cord, and spinal vessels; intramedullary tumors, by destroying the parenchyma and compressing adjacent areas. Because intramedullary tumors may extend over several spinal cord segments, their symptoms are more variable than those of extramedullary tumors.

The following clinical effects are likely with all malignant spinal cord neoplasms:

❑Pain — Most severe directly over the tumor, radiates around the trunk or down the limb on the affected side and is unrelieved by bed rest. It may worsen when lying down or with straining, coughing, or sneezing. Pain can be diffuse, occurring over all extremities. Generally, it progressively worsens and isn't relieved by medication.

❑ Motor symptoms — Asymmetric spastic muscle weakness, decreased muscle tone, exaggerated reflexes, and a positive Babinski's sign. If the tumor is at the level of the cauda equina, muscle flaccidity, muscle wasting, weakness, and progressive diminution in tendon reflexes are characteristic.

❑ Sensory deficits — Contralateral loss of pain, temperature, and touch sensation (Brown-Séquard's syndrome). These losses are less obvious to the patient than functional motor changes. Caudal lesions invariably produce paresthesias in the nerve distribution pathway of the involved roots.

❑Bowel and bladder symptoms — Urine retention is an inevitable late sign with cord compression. Early signs include incomplete emptying or difficulty with the urine stream, which is usually unnoticed or ignored. Cauda equina tumors cause bladder and bowel incontinence due to flaccid paralysis.

READ BOOK EXCERPT ONLINE »

Lung cancer: Signs and symptoms
(Handbook of Diseases)

Because early-stage lung cancer usually produces no symptoms, this disease is typically in an advanced state at diagnosis. The following late-stage signs and symptoms commonly lead to a diagnosis:

❑ with epidermoid and small cell carcinomas: smoker’s cough, hoarseness, wheezing, dyspnea, hemoptysis, and chest pain

❑ with adenocarcinoma and large cell carcinoma: fever, weakness, weight loss, anorexia, and shoulder pain.

Besides their obvious interference with respiratory function, lung tumors may also alter the production of hormones that regulate body function or homeostasis. Clinical conditions that result from such changes are known as hormonal paraneoplastic syndromes:

❑ Gynecomastia may result from large cell carcinoma.

❑ Hypertrophic pulmonary osteoarthropathy (bone and joint pain from cartilage erosion due to abnormal production of growth hormone) may result from large cell carcinoma or adenocarcinoma.

❑ Cushing’s and carcinoid syndromes may result from small cell carcinoma.

❑ Hypercalcemia may result from epidermoid tumors.

Metastatic signs and symptoms vary greatly, depending on the effect of tumors on intrathoracic and distant structures:

❑ bronchial obstruction: hemoptysis, atelectasis, pneumonitis, and dyspnea

❑ recurrent nerve invasion: hoarseness and vocal cord paralysis

❑ chest wall invasion: piercing chest pain; increasing dyspnea; and severe shoulder pain, radiating down the arm

❑ local lymphatic spread: cough, hemoptysis, stridor, and pleural effusion

❑ phrenic nerve involvement: dyspnea; shoulder pain; and unilateral paralyzed diaphragm, with paradoxical motion

❑  esophageal compression: dysphagia

❑ vena caval obstruction: venous distention and edema of the face, neck, chest, or back

❑ pericardial involvement: pericardial effusion, tamponade, and arrhythmias

❑ cervical thoracic sympathetic nerve involvement: miosis, ptosis, exophthalmos, and reduced sweating.

Distant metastasis may involve any part of the body, most commonly the central nervous system, liver, and bone.

READ BOOK EXCERPT ONLINE »

Article Excerpts About Symptoms of Lung cancer:

Lung Cancer: NWHIC (Excerpt)

Early detection remains the key to successful therapy. If you have a history of chronic coughing, coughing up blood, chest pain or fever you should have an evaluation by your physician as soon as possible. (Source: excerpt from Lung Cancer: NWHIC)

What You Need To Know About Lung Cancer: NCI (Excerpt)

Common signs and symptoms of lung cancer include:

• A cough that doesn't go away and gets worse over time

• Constant chest pain

• Coughing up blood

• Shortness of breath, wheezing, or hoarseness

• Repeated problems with pneumonia or bronchitis

• Swelling of the neck and face

• Loss of appetite or weight loss

• Fatigue

Medical articles and books on symptoms:

These general reference articles may be of interest in relation to medical signs and symptoms of disease in general:

• Diagnostic Testing for a Diagnosis of Lung cancer
• Research Alternative Diagnoses for Lung cancer
• How serious is Lung cancer?
• More about Lung cancer
• Online Diagnosis
• Self Diagnosis Pitfalls
• Pitfalls of Online Diagnosis
• Symptoms of the Silent Killer Diseases
• Lesser known silent killer diseases
• Books on signs and symptoms

Full list of premium articles on symptoms and diagnosis

About signs and symptoms of Lung cancer:

The symptom information on this page attempts to provide a list of some possible signs and symptoms of Lung cancer. This signs and symptoms information for Lung cancer has been gathered from various sources, may not be fully accurate, and may not be the full list of Lung cancer signs or Lung cancer symptoms. Furthermore, signs and symptoms of Lung cancer may vary on an individual basis for each patient. Only your doctor can provide adequate diagnosis of any signs or symptoms and whether they are indeed Lung cancer symptoms.