November is lung cancer awareness month, and there are many ways to raise awareness. Here are some facts about this disease:
· There are 158,040 Americans expected to die from lung cancer each year.
· One can get lung cancer by exposure to radon gas, air pollution, previous cancer treatment, other lung diseases and family history.
· Smoking is one of the leading causes of lung cancer.
· For the most part, someone with this disease will not show symptoms.
· Some cells can be hard to detect. It is believed that lung cancer begins with changes to cells that become cancerous, making it hard for these cells to show up on x-rays. They also often do not show any symptoms.
· Some treatments include surgery, chemotherapy, radiation or a combination of both.
Though this form of cancer is the second-most diagnosed cancer in America, there are ways to protect yourself from getting it.
1. Eat fruits and vegetables: studies have shown that these foods release chemicals that can help reduce cell damage.
2. Physical activity: higher physical activity lowers your chances of lung cancer.
There are a few ways to get involved this month to help raise awareness for this deadly disease. One way is by simply wearing a white ribbon. Much like pink shows support for breast cancer, white shows support for lung cancer. Another way is by buying t-shirts, jewelry, and other merchandise from Choose Hope. Choose Hope is an organization that strives to help raise money for all kinds of cancers, as well as support those that are a part of the cancer community. They do this through sales of different merchandise and fundraisers. Their merchandise costs anywhere from 75 cents to $105. Free to Breathe also has a campaign called “flipping out.” In the videos you set up a table with anything on it and flip it. Then post the video on social media with #fliptobreathe. The company wants to use these videos to help raise money for research due to the fact that lung cancer receives less funding than any other form of cancer. If you do not want to participate in these videos you can donate to the foundation as well.
http://www.choosehope.com/category/lung-cancer-clear-white
http://www.everydayhealth.com/news/essential-facts-about-lung-cancer/
http://www.freetobreathe.org/get-involved/lung-cancer-awareness-month
http://www.cancerresearchuk.org/about-cancer/type/lung-cancer/about/lung-cancer-risks-and-causes