India Against Lung Cancer

What is lung cancer?

Lung cancer is a type of cancer that arises in the lungs . It may spread to lymph nodes or other organs in the body, such as the brain.

Lung cancers usually are grouped into two main types, non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and small cell lung cancers (SCLC) based on appearance of tumor cells under the microscope.  Non-small cell lung cancer (75-80 % of cases) is more common than small cell lung cancer (15-20%).

Anatomy and functions of Lungs [1]

The lungs are a pair of sponge-like cone shaped organs in the chest.  These are part of our respiratory system. The left lung is smaller because the heart occupies space on left side.  The lungs are slightly different on each side; Right lung has three lobes, whereas the left lung has two lobes. Lungs are covered by a thin covering called ‘pleura’ which   protects and helps lungs move back and forth as they expand and contract during breathing.A thin, dome-shaped muscle below the lungs called ‘diaphragm’ separates the chest from the abdomen. The diaphragm moves up and down during breathing forcing air in and out of the lungs.

Main function of the lungs is to exchange gases between the air we breathe and the blood. When we breathe in (inhale), oxygen enters into the body through the lungs and when we breathe out (exhale) carbon dioxide is sent out of the body.

Air enters the lungs through nose or mouth via windpipe (trachea) which divides into two airways going into right and left lungs. These airways are called ‘bronchi (singular, bronchus). Inside each lung the bronchus   divides into smaller tubes, the ‘secondary bronchi’ which further subdivide into smaller branches called bronchioles. At the end of the bronchioles are tiny air sacs known as ‘alveoli’. Many tiny blood vessels that run through these alveoli perform the function of exchange of gases.

Burden of diseases

Table : Lung cancer in India ( Globocan 2018)

	Incidence	Mortality
Lung cancer (Men)	48 698	45 363
Women	19 097	18 112
Both sexes	67 795	63 475

The mean age : 54.6 years

Males predominate with a M:F ration of 4.5:1 and this ratio varies with age and smoking status.

The ratio increased progressively upto 51-60 years and then remained same.

The smoker to non-smoker ratio is high up to 20:1 in various studies.

Upto 40 years of age small cell type predominates and has less association with smoking. After the age of 40 years squamous cell type is commonest in smokers and adenocarcinoma in non-smokers.

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