“Many of the patients I’ve treated actually don’t weigh themselves on a regular basis, so they don’t pick up on the actual fact they are losing weight pound-wise,” says Panagis Galiatsatos, MD, an instructor of pulmonary and critical care medicine at Johns Hopkins School of Medicine in Baltimore, Maryland. “But they will say to me, ‘My belt suddenly felt loose, and my pants actually got bigger.’ If that happens to you, and you haven’t been on a diet or exercise program trying to actively lose weight, see your doctor right away. Have a conversation as to whether you might be at risk for lung cancer.” Weight loss isn’t the only sign of lung cancer, though. So, what are the other top signs and symptoms of lung cancer? Here’s everything you need to know.
10 lung symptoms you should take seriously
Got a cough that just won’t quit? Dealing with what you thought was a simple respiratory infection, but now you’re not so sure? When it comes to your lung health, don’t take chances—learn everything you can about your cough or any other symptom that’s bothering you. Here’s the 411 you need to know regarding lung signs you especially need to pay attention to, as some are symptoms of lung cancer and lung disease.
1. Shortness of breath that stops you in your tracks
When is trouble getting enough air considered a medical emergency? When it impedes your ability to do something. “If you experience shortness of breath resulting in inability to walk or speak in full sentences, or you can’t swallow, this is certainly considered to be a medical emergency,” says Kathryn Melamed, MD, a pulmonologist at UCLA Medical Center in Santa Monica, Calif. “Also, shortness of breath that’s accompanied by dizziness, rapid heartbeat, or fever should prompt a patient to seek urgent medical attention.” You could be dealing with any number of conditions with this symptom, including heart trouble that could be serious, so never minimize this.
2. A weird-sounding cough
“Any persistent, severe cough should be evaluated,” says Dr. Melamed. “If you also experience wheezing, which specifically sounds like a high-pitched musical noise heard when you exhale, you want to seek urgent medical care.” A sign that your airway could be compromised or closing up is called stridor—it’s a high-pitched sound heard when you breathe that originates in your throat or neck—you need immediate attention if you hear this. And last, if you hear a “whooping” sound after each cough or after a series of violent coughs, that may be a sign of a Bordetella pertussis infection, which causes whooping cough. Get treatment, because if you have whooping cough, it’s important both for your health and so you don’t spread whooping cough to other people, particularly those who haven’t been vaccinated against it.
3. Developing asthma out of the blue
According to data from MD Anderson Center at The University of Texas, if your doctor tells you you’re suffering from asthma and you’re 30 or older, you may be dealing with a more serious problem, as it’s not typical for asthma to show up this late in life. Don’t panic, but do get that wheezing, cough or shortness of breath seen quickly by a second doctor, and report any other potential signs of lung cancer: weight loss when you’re not trying for it, pain in your chest, arm or shoulder that doesn’t go away, swelling in your face and/or neck, feeling unusually tired or weak, noticing that your fingers look clubbed, or having bronchitis or pneumonia repeatedly.
4. A cough that lasts a really, really long time
A cough that lingers longer than six weeks should always be checked out, as again, it could be a lung cancer symptom, according to MD Anderson. Don’t panic, but do be proactive.
5. A bloody cough
Always a red flag—literally. Coughing up blood could be a sign of lung cancer, injury or other serious illness. “If you ever cough up blood, either bright red new blood or darker old blood, you should seek medical attention,” says Dr. Melamed. “If you cough up bright red blood repeatedly, or ever have an episode where you cough up a half cup of blood or more than that, go straight to the emergency room.”
6. Trouble breathing when you work out
According to the Mayo Clinic, this can be a sign of exercise-induced bronchoconstriction—a form of asthma. How does this happen? When you exert yourself, your airways can narrow, and therefore you can find yourself getting strangely breathless during and after your workout. See your doctor for a lung function test, and if you’ve got it, meds and advice on how to manage your issue so you can comfortably do the exercise you love.
7. Pain when you breathe in and out
“Pain with breathing, known as pleurisy, can be seen with a number of conditions,” says Dr. Melamed. “You could have a pulmonary embolism, or a blood clot in your lungs. You could have pneumonia. You could have a pleural effusion—fluid around your lungs—or musculoskeletal pain on your chest wall, which is often called costochondritis). If your pain is so severe that you can’t take a full breath, seek medical attention.”
8. A sharp pain on one side of your chest
Feel like you’re getting stabbed over and over? You could have a collapsed lung, which could mean you suffer from a genetic condition like Birt-Hogg-Dubé Syndrome, which can cause lung, skin and kidney problems. If your lung has collapsed, you might also have trouble breathing, experience a dry cough, see that you skin looks blue, feel tired, or feel your heart beating very fast. You might also feel a strange cracking in your chest, or your lung might actually feel loose as you move. In some cases, a small collapse can resolve on its own, but you still should call your doctor even if these symptoms go away. A collapsed lung could also indicate an injury or be a symptom of other conditions you need to be treated for.
9. A cough that produces white mucus
While not necessarily dangerous, white mucus could indicate that a lung disease you already have, like asthma or COPD, isn’t as well-controlled as it could be, according to data from Ohio State University’s Wexner Medical Center. Talk to your doctor to see if a new therapy or treatment plan might be in order.
10. Any lung symptom that just doesn’t feel right
You know your body better than anybody else. If a symptom is stressing you out, don’t wish it away—get it checked out, and feel the relief of knowing you’ve got options to help yourself feel better!
Checklist of most common lung cancer signs and symptoms
According to Lungcancer.org, other signs of lung cancer may include:
Persistent or intense coughingPain in the chest, shoulder, or back (that isn’t due to coughing)Spitting up a new color of mucus, or more mucus than you have previouslyShortness of breathVocal changes; hoarsenessHarsh sounds as you breatheRecurrent bronchitis or pneumoniaCoughing up bloody phlegm or mucusCoughing up blood
These symptoms in other parts of your body could also be lung cancer symptoms:
Loss of appetiteLosing muscle FatigueHeadaches, bone or joint painBone fractures not related to an injuryUnsteady gait or memory lossNeck or facial swellingGeneral weaknessBleedingBlood clots
Why do some people notice no signs of lung cancer?
Many patients who have lung cancer never present with any symptoms at all—in fact, they feel perfectly fine when they get diagnosed, which can make the news even more traumatic. So, why do some people notice no signs of lung cancer? “The biggest challenge in finding symptoms of lung cancer has to do with where the cancer grows,” Galiatsatos says. “You may never experience any symptoms at all if your tumor isn’t located around your airway, or if it’s not near your lung’s blood supply area. It’s completely based on the anatomical location of the cancer. If you have a mass obstructing your airway, you might experience recurrent infections; depending on a mass’s location, you might also cough up blood or experience shortness of breath. But a patient could also have a tumor that’s grown to the size of a football and not even realize it because that tumor never impacted the airway or blood supply.” How are such lung cancers often caught by doctors, then? “Often we catch them incidentally—like when you have a scan of your chest area for another reason,” Galiatsatos continues. There are other lesser-known risk factors that may raise your risk of lung cancer. “If you live in a rural community where there are a lot of factories, the air pollution and radon you are chronically exposed to can increase your chance of lung cancer, even if you’re not a smoker,” Galiatsatos explains. “Also, family history can play a role in terms of a non-smoker who develops lung cancer. If you have a first-degree relative who died of lung cancer—a parent or sibling, for example—I would argue strongly that you should be screened for lung cancer yourself. You can speak, again, with your doctor about what age it would be specifically appropriate for you to do so. There’s no specific age at which you should absolutely be screened, as there is for a disease like colon cancer—we don’t have enough data about lung cancer predisposition at this time to warrant that. But if lung cancer is caught early, we can often remove it surgically, sparing a patient long courses of therapy like radiation and chemotherapy.” Ultimately, the best advice you can follow is to listen to your body: If you feel or see changes that are out of the ordinary, they should always concern you. Act quickly—the faster you check out a suspicious sign, the faster you can take action if you do get a lung cancer diagnosis. Be proactive for good health and peace of mind! Check out a lung cancer survivor’s personal story.
Sources
Kathryn Melamed, MD, a pulmonologist at UCLA Medical Center in Santa Monica, CalifPanagis Galiatsatos, MD, instructor of pulmonary and critical care medicine at Johns Hopkins School of Medicine in Baltimore, Maryland
