[Epidemiology of lung cancer in Spain and forecast for the future].
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.
Hernández
Ignacio Sánchez
IS
Servicio de Neumología, Hospital General Universitario, Guadalajara, España. ishernandez@sescam.jccm.es
Alonso
José Luis Izquierdo
JL
Sánchez
Carlos Almonacid
CA
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