November Is Lung Cancer Awareness Month - The BIG Picture

[N'Zinga Shani]

 November is Lung Cancer Awareness Month: Lung Cancer is the top cause of cancer deaths in both men and women.  Today, smoking causes nearly 9 out of 10 lung cancer deaths, while radon gas, pollution, and other chemicals play a smaller role.  See a Visual Guide to  Lung Cancer here:

http://www.webmd.com/lung-cancer/ss/slideshow-lung-cancer-overview

About 90 percent of lung cancers are attributed directly or indirectly to the use of tobacco products. "Tobacco smoke contains over 4,000 chemical compounds, many of which have been shown to be cancer-causing, or carcinogenic. The two primary carcinogens in tobacco smoke are chemicals known as nitrosamines and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons." http://www.webmd.com/lung-cancer/guide/lung-cancer-causes

Lung Cancer Diagnosis - Learn how Lung Cancer is diagnosed by reading or listening here: http://www.webmd.com/lung-cancer/guide/lung-cancer-diagnosis

Your doctor may suspect lung cancer if a routine physical exam reveals:

• Swollen lymph nodes above the collarbone
• A mass in the abdomen
• Weak breathing
• Abnormal sounds in the lungs
• Dullness when the chest is tapped
• Rounding of the fingernails
• Unequal pupils
• Droopy eyelids
• Weakness in one arm
• Expanded veins in the arms, chest, or neck
• Swelling of the face 
  

See the BIG Picture at the Maps linked below

Examine Cancer Incidence Rates By State

The Center for Disease Control & Prevention Provides an Overview of All Cancers by State

The number of people who get cancer is called cancer incidence. In the United States, the rate of getting cancer varies from state to state.

In the following maps, the U.S. states are divided into groups based on the rates at which people developed or died from cancer in 2011, which is the most recent year with numbers available. The rates are the numbers out of 100,000 people who developed or died from cancer each year.

Cancer Incidence Rates by State (This information is quite interesting)

We invite you to click the link below to examine your state and more detailed stats:

 http://www.cdc.gov/cancer/dcpc/data/state.htm

Get the FACTS about Lung Cancer
Myth: If You've Smoked for Years, the Damage Is Done
Fact: It's never too late to stop smoking. Quitting has almost immediate benefits, including improved circulation and lung function. Risk of lung cancer begins to decline over time. Ten years after quitting, former smokers cut their risk of developing lung cancer by up to 50%.

It's November 1, 2014 - Make a Positive Change Today!

Color on Map	Interval	States
Light green	373.8 to 435.8	Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Florida, Hawaii, New Mexico, South Carolina, Texas, Utah, Virginia, and Wyoming
Medium green	435.9 to 457.6	Alabama, Idaho, Indiana, Maryland, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, South Dakota, Vermont
Medium blue	457.7 to 477.2	Georgia, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Mississippi, Montana, North Carolina, Rhode Island, Tennessee, Washington, Wisconsin
Dark blue	477.3 to 509.3	Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, West Virginia
Light Gray	Data not available‡	Nevada

*Rates are per 100,000 and are age-adjusted to the 2000 U.S. standard population.
‡Rates are not shown if the state did not meet USCS publication criteria or if the state did not submit data to CDC.
†Source: U.S. Cancer Statistics Working Group. United States Cancer Statistics: 1999–2011 Incidence and Mortality ... Atlanta (GA): Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and National Cancer Institute; 2014. Available at: www.cdc.gov/uscs.

Cancer Death Rates by State

Rates of dying from cancer also vary from state to state.

All Cancers Combined.  More information available at the various links:

http://www.cdc.gov/cancer/dcpc/data/state.htm