Lung Cancer

After early natural (vs surgical) menopause, women who continued to smoke had 4.5-fold greater risk of lung cancer and related mortality, report study authors.

CHEST 2021: Among >7000 veterans diagnosed with lung cancer and scheduled for surgery, seeing a primary care doctor was linked to pre-operative quitting.

New research presented at the virtual European Respiratory Society International Congress showed "social smokers" are more than twice as likely to die of lung disease vs non-smokers.

The proposed recommendations will allow more women and black patients to be eligible for lung cancer screening.

Nicotine amounts aren't constant among cigar brands Even smokers of the same brand may be exposed to varying doses of nicotine and other smoke constituents.

Infections with pneumonia send a substantial number of older adults to the hospital, much more than younger adults. Researchers are calling for new rapid diagnostic tests.

I was “foggy” on when and how to apply screens for lung cancer with low-dose CT, but a perfect model for a 3-question template provided answers.

Congestive heart failure and cirrhosis are the most common causes of transudative pleural effusions, while pneumonia and malignancy are responsible for the majority of exudative effusions. Plain chest films are valuable in confirming the presence of an effusion, providing clues to the cause, and directing the method of pleural fluid sampling. Thoracentesis is safe and simple, and it is diagnostic in about 75% of cases. Pleural biopsy is indicated for unexplained exudative effusions, most of which are found to result from malignancy or tuberculosis. Medical thoracoscopy, if available, is the procedure of choice for patients with these effusions. Thoracoscopy permits visually directed pleural biopsies and allows for therapeutic intervention at the time of diagnosis, obviating the need for subsequent invasive procedures.

A 57-year-old man requests an extensive medical evaluation as part of a transition in the ownership of his business. He is generally healthy, although he reports that his capacity for physical exertion has diminished over the past several years. He denies chest pain with effort, dyspnea at night or on exertion, cough, and sputum production.

abstract: Hemoptysis has many causes, including bronchiectasis, lung cancer, and bronchitis. The initial goals of the history and physical examination are to differentiate hemoptysis from epistaxis and hematemesis and then to establish its severity. A variety of signs and symptoms may suggest the underlying cause. For example, hematuria suggests vasculitis or an immunologically mediated disease, such as Wegener granulomatosis or systemic lupus erythematosus. The workup includes chest radiography and measurement of hemoglobin and hematocrit levels, platelet count, international normalized ratio, activated partial thromboplastin time, and creatinine level. Chest CT scanning often identifies sources of bleeding that are not apparent on radiographs and sometimes can be used in conjunction with bronchoscopy. Patients with massive hemoptysis should be hospitalized for rapid evaluation and intervention; treatment may include interventional bronchoscopy, angiography, or embolization. (J Respir Dis. 2007;28(4):139-148)