Experts explain invisible threats and the latest treatments and preventions

Lung cancer is the most common cancer in the world and the leading cause of cancer death. In 2020, approximately 1.8 million people died of lung cancer worldwide, accounting for 18.7% of all cancer deaths, of which 710,000 were from China, accounting for 23.8% of cancer deaths in China. Recently, it has been found that 80% of Asian women with lung cancer do not smoke, which is significantly higher than women of other races, which has attracted the attention and research of the medical community. [Health 1+1] invites experts to conduct in-depth analysis of the prevention, diagnosis and latest treatment options for lung cancer

Why do Asian women who don’t smoke have a high incidence of lung cancer?

Regarding the high incidence of lung cancer among Asian women who are mostly non-smokers, Professor Lin Sijia said in the program [Health 1+1] that according to research, the incidence of lung cancer among Asian American women is 1.5-2 times higher than that of other ethnic groups, among which Chinese and Indian women have the highest proportion of non-smokers, exceeding 80%. In contrast, only 25-30% of white female lung cancer patients are non-smokers. Therefore, they are conducting a study called FANS (Lung Cancer Study of Asian Women Who Never Smoked). According to the research, Professor Lin summarized the following main risk factors:

Environmental factors

• Secondhand smoke exposure
• Kitchen fumes (especially those produced when cooking at high temperatures)
• Indoor air pollution
• Pollutants from coal heating
• Radon gas exposure

Health factors

• Previous history of lung infection (e.g. tuberculosis, pneumonia)
• Genetic traits

When is the best time to do lung cancer screening?

Some studies have found that family history is a very important factor in non-smokers with lung cancer. If brothers, sisters, parents, or children have a history of lung cancer, the probability of developing lung cancer will increase significantly, about 1% to 2%. Therefore, Dr. Wu recommends that anyone with a family history of lung cancer, generally over the age of 45, or even over 40, go for a health check. In the past, chest X-rays could only detect tumors larger than 2 or 3 centimeters. Now, low-dose CT scans are generally recommended, which can detect early lung cancers smaller than 1 centimeter. Of course, if you are really worried about getting lung cancer, you can also do a low-dose CT scan if you are under 40 or close to 40 years old.