title: [Epidemiology of lung cancer in Spain and forecast for the future].
abstract: Lung cancer, a steadily growing problem, ranks as the first cause of tumor-related deaths in developed countries. The relation between lung cancer and smoking makes it a potentially avoidable disease. Found mainly in men, it has made alarming gains among women. The main prognostic factor is the possibility of receiving curative surgery; however, in real practice the diagnosis usually comes when the disease has reached an advanced stage, when only 20% can be treated surgically. Nonsurgical treatments based on chemo- and radiotherapy have not advanced appreciably in recent years, and 5-year survival is poor, estimated at only around 7% to 12% in Spain. Attempts must be made to improve preventive measures and early diagnosis in order to improve the prognosis for lung cancer patients.
authors.affiliation: Servicio de Neumología, Hospital General Universitario, Guadalajara, España. ishernandez@sescam.jccm.es
authors.forename: Ignacio Sánchez
authors.initials: IS
authors.lastname: Hernández
authors.forename: José Luis Izquierdo
authors.initials: JL
authors.lastname: Alonso
authors.forename: Carlos Almonacid
authors.initials: CA
authors.lastname: Sánchez
mesh_terms: D042241:Early Diagnosis; D005260:Female; D005544:Forecasting; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D008175:Lung Neoplasms / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000401:mortality / Q000628:therapy; D008297:Male; D015995:Prevalence; D011446:Prospective Studies; D013030:Spain / Q000453:epidemiology; D015996:Survival Rate