Common Lung Cancer Symptoms, Described by Real Patients

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Common Lung Cancer Symptoms – Described by Real Patients

Lung cancer can be difficult to diagnose as lung cancer symptoms are often closely related to several other types of diseases. However, knowing the lung cancer symptoms and paying attention to your body are key ways to detect cancer in its early stages.

While lung cancer can lead to common syndromes like Horner syndrome, Super Vena Cava Syndrome, or Paraneoplastic syndromes, most forms of lung cancer present similar kinds of symptoms.

How Patients Described Their First Signs of Lung Cancer

While each lung cancer patient has their own experience. Learning about other’s experiences and symptoms can help you identify early signs of lung cancer and know what to expect if you are diagnosed.

Lasting Cough

The thing is that when you look back, historically, it makes a little bit more sense. When you’re going through it, you just think, “Oh, it’s an allergy, it’s like a cold.”

– Terri C. | Read more

I rarely got sick or went to the doctor but I had had a persistent cold and cough for several weeks and finally decided to go to the doctor.

– Lisa G. | Read more

Then I developed a cough that wouldn’t go away. A lingering cough. The chest pain was still there.

– Montessa L. | Read more

Trouble Breathing and Shortness of Breath

I began to have shortness of breath. I think because of the timing of the year and all of the things I mentioned before, I just assumed it was allergies or something normal, that this is what happened to normal people.

– Stephen H. | Read more

Bone Pain

I just started having some issues with my right elbow. I couldn’t completely straighten in and it hurt a little bit. The left side of my neck also was bothering me a bit. Initially I didn’t think anything of it, but it didn’t go away.

– Ivy E. | Read more

Headache and Dizziness

Then I got vertigo. I had lightheadedness. I got the IUD removed eventually, and that didn’t change anything.

– Tara S. | Read more

Reoccurring or Lasting Chest Infections

About six months later, I got sick again, and I got pneumonia again. So now I was thinking I’m 34 years old and healthy, why did I get pneumonia again? 

– Dave B. | Read more

Related Links and Resources

The internet has never ending stream of information about lung cancer symptoms. In fact, there is so much information out there, it’s hard to know what to trust. Therefore, we’ve provided a few trustworthy resources to learn more about lung cancer and its symptoms.

Lung Cancer Symptoms

If you are looking to learn more about the symptoms associated with lung cancer visit:

Learn More About Lung Cancer

Learn about immunotherapy and treatment options for several types of lung cancer from thoracic oncologist Dr. D. Ross Camidge.

Targeted therapy for cancer treatment lab

Find out more about how doctors are using targeted therapy to treat lung cancer involving certain gene mutations.

Hear from patients with a wide array of cancer diagnoses about what cancer feels like initially and throughout the entire treatment process.

immunotherapy

Learn more about immunotherapy and how it can be used to treat lung cancer.

Discover which symptoms are actually side effects of cancer treatment.

See how The White Ribbon Project is helping raise awareness about Lung Cancer.

What to Do If You Are Experiencing Symptoms

If you or a loved one are experiencing any of the symptoms linked to lung cancer, it’s best to be seen by a doctor. While you certainly don’t need to panic, early detection is one of the best tools we have against fighting cancer.

If you have questions about symptoms of other types of cancer or other cancer-related topics visit our navigating cancer page.