This may be called 'palliative care' or 'supportive care.' It is often started soon after diagnosis and continued throughout treatment. If cancer is diagnosed, relieving symptoms remains an important part of cancer care and treatment. Muscle loss also contributes to weakness and loss of mobility. Fatigue and weakness can further worsen a person’s ability to breathe. Loss of appetite can cause weight loss and muscle loss. Cancer anywhere in the body can cause a person to feel unwell in a general way. Symptoms such as fatigue, feeling out-of-sorts or unwell, and loss of appetite are not necessarily caused by metastases.

Rarely, a lung tumor can release hormones that cause problems such as low blood sodium levels or high blood calcium levels It most commonly spreads to the lymph nodes, other parts of the lungs, bones, brain, liver, and structures near the kidneys called the adrenal glands.

NSCLC can spread anywhere in the body through a process called metastasis. This prevents oxygen from getting in the body and carbon dioxide from leaving the body by blocking the flow of air into the lungs, or by using up the space normally required for oxygen to come in and carbon dioxide to go out of the lung. A lung tumor may also make fluid that can build up in the lung or the space around the lung or push the air out of the lungs and cause the lung to collapse. Most people with NSCLC are diagnosed when the tumor grows, takes up space, or begins to cause problems with parts of the body near the lungs. This is to help figure out the cause of the problem, called a diagnosis.įor people with NSCLC who have no symptoms, the cancer may be noticed on an imaging test – such as a chest x-ray or CT scan – performed for some other reason, such as checking for heart disease. Your doctor will ask how long and how often you’ve been experiencing the symptom(s), in addition to other questions. If you are concerned about any changes you experience, please talk with your doctor. Or, the cause of a symptom or sign may be a medical condition that is not cancer.Ĭhest pain, if a tumor spreads to the lining of the lung or other parts of the body near the lungs Sometimes people with NSCLC do not have any of the signs and symptoms described below.

Together, signs and symptoms can describe a medical problem. A sign is something that other people can identify and measure, such as a fever, rash, or an elevated pulse. A symptom is something that only the person experiencing it can identify and describe, such as fatigue, nausea, or pain. People with NSCLC may experience the following symptoms or signs. ON THIS PAGE: You will find out more about body changes and other things that can signal a problem that may need medical care.

Lung cancer xray