Every day 22 Mexicans die as a result of lung cancer because 98% of cases are diagnosed in very advanced stages, Fanny Romero, Institutional Director of the Civil Association Breathing with Bravery.
(Excelsior).- Romero added that more than 8,000 cases are detected annually and unfortunately in the same year that a patient is discovered with the disease, they lose their lives, which is why lung cancer has also become the leading cause of death in the country for this type of neoplasms.
There are approximately 8 thousand cases a year and of these, 7 thousand 100 patients die in the same year of diagnosis. So they are alarming diagnoses and statistics because patients die in the first year of diagnosis, ”she explained.
On National Lung Cancer Day -which has been commemorated on April 5 since 2018-, Fanny Romero added that currently, this condition is occurring among people between the ages of 30 and 35, when before, it only affected people older than 60 years.
There are various risk factors, but active or passive tobacco smoke is associated with 70% of diagnoses. In fact, the lungs of nonsmokers are also affected by inhaling secondhand smoke.
Contact with toxic substances in factories, or contact with asbestos from auto parts or in houses where there are asbestos sheets, are also risk factors,” she pointed out.
The institutional director of “Breathing with Bravery” added that exposure to wood smoke, which is used in homes in rural areas for cooking, is another risk factor that has increased early cases of lung cancer, where the most affected are women.
16% of women in Mexico use firewood to cook and this has resulted in up to 27% of cases treated at the National Cancer Institute (INCAN) being due to exposure to wood smoke,” she said.
Against this background, Fanny Romero explained that “Breathing with Bravery” is the only civil association in Mexico that free of charge helps people with lung cancer so that they have early access to the necessary treatments even if they require it. to palliative care.
She pointed out that in case of any symptoms they can be contacted through the page https://respirandoconvalor.org/
Among the main symptoms that can be considered as an alert that you could have lung cancer are: cough, that does not go away with time or with syrups, constant chest pain, cough with bleeding that may be accompanied by phlegm, sudden loss of weight and fatigue”, he indicated.
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