Fluid In The Lungs Can Be A Really Severe Condition So Its Vital To Find Out Its Causes Symptoms And Treatments To Prevent Or Heal This Condition
The lungs are located within the chest, just under the rib cage. They are critical for breathing in oxygen and expelling carbon dioxide. Compared to other organs in the chest, the lungs are considered relatively large. They are located on either side of the heart in two cavities. Although at first glance the two cavities look identical, the right cavity is made up of three lobes and the left cavity is made up of two lobes. Each of the lobes is composed of clusters of alveoli or air sacs, which is where the gases are exchanged and then oxygen is taken up by the bloodstream for transport throughout the body.
The process of breathing is continuous provided if the alveoli are intact and functioning normally. However, the accumulation of fluid in the lungs, also called pulmonary edema, compromises the lungs ability to uptake oxygen and to expel carbon dioxide. Pulmonary edema is a medical condition that is characterized by the abnormal accumulation of fluid in the lungs, inflammation of the lungs, and difficulty breathing. This article will explore the symptoms, causes and treatment strategies for pulmonary edema.
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A Disease No One Gets
Sadly, people donât âgetâ mets. In fact, a recent survey sponsored by Pfizer Oncology shows just how misunderstood it is. Sixty percent of the 2,000 people surveyed knew little to nothing about MBC while 72 percent believed advanced breast cancer was curable as long as it was diagnosed early. Even more disheartening, a full 50 percent thought breast cancer progressed because patients either didnât take the right treatment or the right preventive measures.
âTheyâve built an industry built on four words â early detection equals cure â and that doesnât even begin to define breast cancer,â said Schoger, who helped found Breast Cancer Social Media, a virtual community for breast cancer patients, caregivers, surgeons, oncologists and others. âWomen are blamed for the fate of bad biology.â
The MBC Alliance, a consortium of 29 cancer organizations including the biggest names in breast cancer , addressed this lack of understanding and support as well as what many patient advocates term the underfunding of MBC research in a recently published landmark report.
Why Does Metastatic Breast Cancer Happen
Most often, metastatic cancer occurs because treatment didnt destroy all the cancer cells. Sometimes, a few cells remain dormant, or are hidden and undetectable. Then, for reasons providers dont fully understand, the cells begin to grow and spread again.
De novo metastatic breast cancer means that at the time of initial diagnosis, the breast cancer has already spread to other parts of the body. In the absence of treatment, the cancer spreads.
There is nothing you can do to keep breast cancer from metastasizing. And metastatic breast cancer doesnt happen because of something you did.
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Outcomes And Survival Rates
There is currently no cure for widely metastatic lung cancer. However, advancements in cancer research and treatment continue to improve survival times and quality of life for people living with lung cancer that has metastasized to the brain. Previously, lung cancer with multiple brain metastasis was considered a hopeless diagnosis, but new targeted therapies have changed that. For example, a decade ago, many people with ALK-driven lung cancer were expected to survive six to nine months. Now, they are able to survive an average of four or five years.
It is important not to get discouraged by survival rates you might read online. They are only averages of the millions of people around the world who have dealt with lung cancer and brain metastases each of whom, like you, is in a unique scenario. Some people survive the average amount of time, but there are also many people who survive much longer.
It is also important to remain hopeful as you or your loved one go through this journey. In fact, studies show that people who have high resiliency and greater social and emotional support report a higher quality of life during treatment than people who do not. Having regular follow-ups with your doctor and health care team will also give you the best outcome for your specific situation.
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Diagnosing Metastatic Breast Cancer
Getting a clear picture of where breast cancer has spread is essential for creating a personalized treatment plan. Your care team will likely use a combination of the following tests and tools to diagnose both localized and advanced breast cancer:
Ultrasound exam: With this imaging technique, sound waves create a picture of internal areas of the body.
Magnetic resonance imaging : This procedure produces detailed images using magnetic fields and radio waves.
Blood chemistry studies: A blood sample is taken to measure the amounts of certain substances that are released by your organs and tissues. A higher or lower amount of a particular substance may be a sign of disease.
Breast biopsy: A biopsy is the removal of cells or tissues so a pathologist may view them through a microscope. Your original breast cancer diagnosis was likely confirmed with a biopsy.
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Stem Cell Or Bone Marrow Transplant
A stem cell transplant, sometimes called bone marrow transplant, replaces damaged blood-forming cells with healthy ones. The procedure takes place following large-dose chemotherapy or radiation therapy to kill cancer cells and to stop your stem cells from producing cancerous cells.
Stem cell transplants can be used for several types of cancer, including multiple myeloma and some kinds of leukemia.
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Metastatic Breast Cancer Treatment
When cancer has spread to other parts of the body, oncologists usually recommend systemic treatment, which can destroy abnormal cells in multiple locations. Depending on the specifics of a patients diagnosis, surgery may or may not be recommended.
Moffitt Cancer Center provides a complete range of breast cancer treatments through the Don & Erika Wallace Comprehensive Breast Program. This includes chemotherapy, radiation therapy and surgery, as well as immunotherapy, hormone therapy and supportive care. Patients with metastatic breast cancer may also consider enrolling in a clinical trial at Moffitt to expand their options even further.
If youd like to request an appointment, call or submit a new patient registration form online. Referrals are welcome, but never required.
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What Are The Symptoms Of Sternum Cancer
The symptoms of sternum cancer are varied since it may involve different areas of the body, but fatigue, pain around the chest region, bruising, and a general feeling of malaise are common. Sternum cancer can include malignancies found in the bones of the sternum itself, the breasts, or the lungs. In some cases cancer will begin in one area and then spread to another within the same region. The lymph nodes closet to the breast or lungs, as well as the liver, may also be affected.
Sternum cancer includes one of several cancers affecting an organ or tissue in the same general region of the body. The sternum generally includes the chest area and the breast bone underneath. Several vital organ systems are found there, including the lungs and liver.
Since so many varied diseases can affect the area, sternum cancer may not have any specific symptoms in and of itself. Most women notice a lump in the breast or armpit as a first sign of breast cancer, while lung cancer may present itself as frequent coughing and shortness of breath. Bone cancer generally causes extreme fatigue, bruising, and lethargy. Liver cancers are often asymptomatic, but they may cause jaundice and digestive problems.
Can Metastatic Breast Cancer Be Cured
There is no cure for metastatic breast cancer. Once the cancer cells have spread to another distant area of the body, its impossible to get rid of them all. However, the right treatment plan can help extend your life and improve its quality.
Metastatic breast cancer treatment aims to shrink tumors, slow their growth and improve your symptoms.
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Cancer Stem Cells And Associated Signaling Pathways
Cancer stem cells , also named tumor-initiating cells or stem-like cells from solid tumors of different organs , have the ability of self-renewal and differentiation. As such, CSCs can differentiate sufficiently to recapitulate the heterogeneity of tumors.- It has now been established that breast cancer stem cells are responsible for metastatic growth in breast cancer which contributes to the majority of breast cancer related mortality.,
In summary, preclinical and clinical studies have shown that enrichment of BCSCs may result in increased invasiveness and a worse prognosis. The development of CSC properties is known to depend on an intricate signaling network. These signaling pathways play an important role in balancing self-renewal with differentiation of cancer stem cells., In the following sections, we summarize the potential roles of common CSC-associated signaling pathways in breast cancer lung metastasis.
Metastatic Lung Cancer Outlook
Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer deaths in the world. Thereâs no way to prevent lung cancer, but there are ways to treat it. And thereâs reason to be hopeful: Doctors are working on new treatments every day. Immunotherapy, which boosts your bodyâs own cancer-fighting powers, has shown promise in recent years.
Your outlook for living with metastatic lung cancer depends in part on where the cancer started. Itâs rare, but people with sarcoma, renal cell carcinoma, bladder cancer, colon cancer, or melanoma can sometimes be cured with surgery. And chemotherapy may cure some people with cancer that started in the testicles or lymph nodes.
Most people with this type of cancer can expect to live about 5 years. But that doesnt take into account newer treatments, like immunotherapy, which boosts your bodyâs own cancer-fighting powers. And it also doesnât reflect that everyone is different. How well you respond to treatment depends on what treatment you and your doctor chose, your overall health when you were diagnosed, how soon you were diagnosed, and how far the cancer has spread.
Living with lung cancer takes a toll on your mental health, not just your physical health. So itâs key to take steps to manage your stress and anxiety.
Joining a cancer support group or talking privately with a therapist are booth good ways to deal with your feelings. Ask your doctor to suggest options that may be right for you.
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Clinical Features Of Metastasis In Breast Cancer
With improvements in earlier diagnosis of breast cancer, only 510% of patients have distant metastasis at the time of diagnosis.14,15 However, the risk of recurrent metastatic disease following standard treatment is still high. More than 30% of breast cancer patients suffer recurrence, and the occurrence of lung or bone metastasis can reach greater than 60% in metastatic breast cancer patients.7 More than half a million women worldwide still suffer from metastatic breast cancer annually, and 90% of the deaths can be attributed to metastasis from breast cancer.16,17
Most recently, a SEER database analysis indicated that patients with TNBC, especially BLBC, primarily presented with lung metastasis. However, there was no difference in the total probability of lung metastasis across all subtypes.25 Furthermore, the study revealed that all breast cancers regardless of subtype, were prone to metastasize to bone over other locations. Specifically the incidience of bone metastasis is highest in luminal cancers. Although there are discrepancies among reports regarding the preferred metastatic sites of breast cancer subtypes, it is widely accepted that different subtypes exhibit distinctive behavior with regards to the sites of distant metastasis.
Johns Hopkins Researchers Discover How Breast Cancer Spreads To Lung
The spread of breast cancer is responsible for more than 90 percent of breast cancer deaths. Now, the process by which it spreads or metastasizes has been unraveled by researchers at Johns Hopkins.
Reporting in two papers, the researchers have discovered the switch that enables breast cancer cells to travel to and be received in the lungs.
The results appear in two separate papers, one in the September 12 issue of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Science Early Edition and the other in the August 22 issue of Oncogene.
Metastasis transforms breast cancer from a local, curable disease, to one that is systemic and lethal, says Gregg L. Semenza, M.D., Ph.D., the C. Michael Armstrong Professor of Medicine, director of the Vascular Program in the Institute for Cell Engineering and a member of the McKusick-Nathans Institute of Genetic Medicine at Johns Hopkins. Metastasis was long thought a late event in cancer progression, but we have now shown metastasis to be an early event that is dependent on HIF-1
Discovered by Semenzas team nearly 20 years ago, the HIF-1 protein controls genes that enable cells to survive in low oxygen, like cells in solid tumors. More recently, others have found that in patients with breast cancer, an increase in HIF-1 activity correlates with increase in metastasis and decreased survival.
Semenzas team used breast cancer cells grown in low oxygen to examine the activity of 88 genes known to play a role in metastasis.
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Surgical Therapy For Pulmonary Metastasis Of Breast Cancer
1 Division of Thoracic Surgery, Department of Surgery, Kindai University Faculty of Medicine, Osaka-sayama , Division of Breast and Endocrine Surgery, Department of Surgery, Kindai University Faculty of Medicine, Osaka-sayama , , Japan
Contributions: Conception and design: J Soh Administrative support: J Soh Provision of study materials or patients: J Soh Collection and assembly of data: J Soh Data analysis and interpretation: J Soh Manuscript writing: All authors Final approval of manuscript: All authors.
Correspondence to:
Keywords: Pulmonary metastasectomy oligometastasis differential diagnosis
Submitted Feb 15, 2020. Accepted for publication Mar 09, 2020.
doi: 10.21037/tcr.2020.03.63
Living With Secondary Breast Cancer
You will see your cancer doctor or specialist nurse regularly during and after treatment. This means that any symptoms or problems can be managed early on. You may have regular scans to check how the cancer has responded to treatment.
You may need treatment at different times or have ongoing treatment with hormone therapy. There may be long periods when the cancer is controlled and you are getting on with day-to-day life.
We have more about well-being and coping in our information about living with secondary breast cancer.
You may get anxious between appointments. This is natural. It may help to get support from family, friends or a support organisation. Macmillan is also here to support you. If you would like to talk, you can:
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If Your Breast Cancer Has Spread
Even if your breast cancer has spread to other parts of your body, it does not necessarily mean its not treatable. If the cancer cannot be removed, the goal of treatment is to improve symptoms, improve quality of life and extend survival.
Some women live with breast cancer for several years as they learn to adjust and accept that theyll be on treatment for an indefinite period of time, explains Dr. Roesch. Your cancer team will help you learn and cope with what you can expect on this journey.
Bone Thinning Bone And Joint Pain
A group of estrogen-blocking breast cancer drugs called aromatase inhibitors may turn your bones more brittle. That may cause bone and joint pain.
Certain types of chemotherapy can also cause bone thinning. If you arenât already in menopause, it may start prematurely.
Breast cancer itself can cause pain if it spreads to your bones. A specialized radiation treatment called radiotherapy can sometimes help. Ask your doctor about other treatment options like pain medications.
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Where Can Breast Cancer Go
Breast cancer mostly spreads to the bones, lungs, liver, and brain. When it does, you may start to notice symptoms that affect that area of your body.
Bones: swelling, intense pain, bones that break easily, and pain in your bones, back, neck, or joints
Lungs: long-lasting cough, trouble breathing, chest pain
Liver: Jaundice, or skin with a yellow tint, rashes and itchy skin, not feeling hungry, stomach pain
Brain: headaches that wonât go away, problems with your vision, seizures, vomiting and nausea, memory troubles, feeling dizzy
Other, less common, places where breast cancer spreads include:
Let your doctor know as soon as you can if you have any of these symptoms. They donât always mean your cancer has moved to another organ, but your doctor might want you to take some tests to make sure.
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Clinical Features Of Pulmonary Metastasis In Breast Cancer
At the time of diagnosis, only 510% of breast cancer patients have distant metastasis . However, more than 30% of breast cancer patients experience recurrence . The bone, liver, lung, and brain are common sites of distant metastasis in breast cancer . At diagnosis, most pulmonary metastases are asymptomatic however, progression may cause serious conditions and symptoms such as cough, hemoptysis, pleural effusion, and pulmonary dysfunction, which profoundly affect patients quality of life and survival . There is a need to establish better treatment strategies for pulmonary metastasis in breast cancer.
The reported incidence of pulmonary metastasis in patients with breast cancer ranges from 7% to 24% according to histological and molecular subtypes . Visceral metastasis such as pulmonary metastasis preferentially occurs in triple-negative breast cancer patients, while bone metastasis is frequent in non-TNBC patients . The incidence of pulmonary metastasis can reach 40% in TNBC and 20% in non-TNBC patients . Different subtypes exhibit distinctive behavior concerning the sites of distant metastasis .
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