{"id":528,"date":"2019-01-24T15:43:56","date_gmt":"2019-01-24T15:43:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.healthnews.ie\/news\/lung-cancer-advice-that-may-save-your-life\/"},"modified":"2020-02-21T10:15:27","modified_gmt":"2020-02-21T10:15:27","slug":"reduce-lung-cancer-risk","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.healthnews.ie\/respiratory\/reduce-lung-cancer-risk\/","title":{"rendered":"Reduce your risk of getting lung cancer with this advice"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<div style=\"background-color:#f2f2f2;color:#32373c\" class=\"wp-block-atomic-blocks-ab-profile-box round ab-has-avatar ab-font-size-14 ab-block-profile ab-profile-columns\"><div class=\"ab-profile-column ab-profile-avatar-wrap\"><div class=\"ab-profile-image-wrap\"><figure class=\"ab-profile-image-square\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"792\" height=\"788\" class=\"ab-profile-avatar wp-image-888\" src=\"https:\/\/s3.eu-north-1.amazonaws.com\/cdn-site.mediaplanet.com\/app\/uploads\/sites\/94\/2019\/01\/07211752\/Screen-Shot-2017-11-13-at-15.43.17.png\" srcset=\"https:\/\/s3.eu-north-1.amazonaws.com\/cdn-site.mediaplanet.com\/app\/uploads\/sites\/94\/2019\/01\/07211752\/Screen-Shot-2017-11-13-at-15.43.17.png 792w, https:\/\/s3.eu-north-1.amazonaws.com\/cdn-site.mediaplanet.com\/app\/uploads\/sites\/94\/2019\/01\/07211752\/Screen-Shot-2017-11-13-at-15.43.17-125x125.png 125w, https:\/\/s3.eu-north-1.amazonaws.com\/cdn-site.mediaplanet.com\/app\/uploads\/sites\/94\/2019\/01\/07211752\/Screen-Shot-2017-11-13-at-15.43.17-768x764.png 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 792px) 100vw, 792px\" \/><\/figure><\/div><\/div><div class=\"ab-profile-column ab-profile-content-wrap\"><h2 class=\"ab-profile-name\" style=\"color:#32373c\"><strong>Aoife McNamara<\/strong><br \/><\/h2><p class=\"ab-profile-title\" style=\"color:#32373c\">Information Development Manager, Irish Cancer Society<\/p><div class=\"ab-profile-text\"><\/div><ul class=\"ab-social-links\"><\/ul><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p><em>Lung cancer is one of the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.irishtimes.com\/topics\/topics-7.1213540?article=true&amp;tag_person=Aoife+Mcnamara\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" aria-label=\"most common cancers in Ireland (opens in a new tab)\">most common cancers in Ireland<\/a>, and sadly, more Irish people die from lung cancer than any other cancer. Here is what you need to know: to reduce your risk of getting cancer.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator\" \/>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>The statistics on lung cancer<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>Around <strong>2,500 people in Ireland <\/strong>get lung cancer each year.<\/li><li>Lung cancer accounts for <strong>one in five<\/strong> cancer deaths here.<\/li><li>Often, lung cancer is only <strong>diagnosed at a late stage<\/strong>, meaning that it is more difficult to treat and there is less chance of cure.<\/li><li>Lung cancer usually affects people over 40, but the <strong>average age of diagnosis is about 70<\/strong>. &nbsp;<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>But what causes lung cancer?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Here are a few factors that <strong>may increase your risk:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.healthnews.ie\/oncology\/young-non-smokers-are-increasingly-at-risk-of-lung-cancer\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" aria-label=\"Smoking causes almost nine in ten lung cancers (opens in a new tab)\">Smoking causes almost nine in ten lung cancers<\/a>; the sooner you stop smoking, the more you reduce your risk of getting cancer<\/li><li>Breathing in other people\u2019s smoke (second-hand smoke)<\/li><li>A family history \u2013 having a parent, brother or sister with the disease \u2013 indicates an increased risk<\/li><li>Being exposed to certain chemicals such as asbestos, metal dust, paints and diesel exhausts<\/li><li>Being exposed to radon gas in areas where levels are high also puts you in more danger<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>It\u2019s important to note that having a risk factor doesn\u2019t mean that you\u2019ll definitely get lung cancer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>It\u2019s never too late<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Make some lifestyle changes that <strong>can reduce your risk of getting cancer:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ol class=\"wp-block-list\"><li><strong>Don\u2019t smoke<\/strong> \u2013 this is by far the most important thing you can do to reduce your risk of getting cancer. Cigarettes, pipes, cigars, \u2018roll-ups\u2019 and low-tar cigarettes all increase the risk. It\u2019s never too late to quit.<\/li><li>Avoid <strong>second-hand smoke.<\/strong><\/li><li>Look out for any <strong>changes that are not normal<\/strong> for you.<br>Talk to your doctor if you notice anything unusual, such as pain, unusual bleeding or new symptoms that don\u2019t clear up after a few weeks.<\/li><\/ol>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>If you do get lung cancer, you can beat it!<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>One of the most effective ways of surviving this disease is by <strong>early detection and diagnosis. <\/strong>If you spot any of the following symptoms, talk to your doctor:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>Difficulty breathing or wheezing<\/li><li>A cough that doesn\u2019t go away, or a change in a long-term cough<\/li><li>Repeated chest infections that won\u2019t go away<\/li><li>Feeling more tired than usual<\/li><li>A hoarse voice<\/li><li>Coughing up blood-stained phlegm<\/li><li>Pain in your chest, especially when you cough or breathe in<\/li><li>Loss of appetite or weight loss<\/li><li>Swelling around your face and neck<\/li><li>Difficulty swallowing &nbsp;<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Having any one symptom doesn\u2019t automatically mean you have lung cancer. In fact, there\u2019s a good chance it won\u2019t be cancer. But getting your symptoms checked is not wasting anyone\u2019s time. The sooner cancer is spotted, the more likely you are to recover from it.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Lung cancer is one of the most common cancers in Ireland, and sadly, more Irish people die from lung cancer than any other cancer. Here is what you need to know:<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":22,"featured_media":1235,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[130],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-528","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-respiratory"],"acf":[],"featured_image_src":"https:\/\/s3.eu-north-1.amazonaws.com\/cdn-site.mediaplanet.com\/app\/uploads\/sites\/94\/2019\/02\/07211624\/eye-health-light-tips-sunglasses-600x400.jpg","featured_image_src_square":"https:\/\/s3.eu-north-1.amazonaws.com\/cdn-site.mediaplanet.com\/app\/uploads\/sites\/94\/2019\/02\/07211624\/eye-health-light-tips-sunglasses-600x600.jpg","author_info":{"display_name":"Health Awareness","author_link":"https:\/\/www.healthnews.ie\/author\/jennyhyndman\/"},"vicky_index_order":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.healthnews.ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/528","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.healthnews.ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.healthnews.ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.healthnews.ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/22"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.healthnews.ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=528"}],"version-history":[{"count":7,"href":"https:\/\/www.healthnews.ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/528\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4338,"href":"https:\/\/www.healthnews.ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/528\/revisions\/4338"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.healthnews.ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1235"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.healthnews.ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=528"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.healthnews.ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=528"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.healthnews.ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=528"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}