Quit Smoking To Reduce The Cancer Risks
If you are looking for reasons to stop smoking then the potential to develop a number of different and deadly cancers seems to be a good place to start. One type of cancer that smokers are at risk for is cancer of the larynx. This type of cancer is known to be more common among men who are cigarette smokers. As a matter of fact eighty percent of those who develop this cancer are male smokers who are over sixty years old. The early symptoms include a hoarse voice, trouble swallowing and maybe some ear pain. Smoking cigarettes seems to alter the lining of the larynx and this is how the cancer develops.
Depending on how severe the case of cancer is the outlook is usually pretty good for treating this type of cancer. Radiation therapy is quite successful, but sometimes the larynx itself must be removed if the cancer is more severe. That means that normal speech is no longer possible. It also means breathing with a tracheostomy. Surely smoking is not worth this risk.
Most people assume that the only risk of cancer related to smoking is lung cancer. Although lung cancer is certainly a risk so is cancer of the bladder. This type of cancer is more common for those aged sixty to eighty and is three times more likely to be a condition in men than in women. This cancer is known to be caused by external elements that alter the wall of the balder. Cigarette smoke is known to be the cause of this type of cancer in fifty percent of the cases diagnosed. It is often first discovered by blood in the urine. If caught early the prognosis is pretty good especially if it is the non-invasive type.
It is believed that smoking also plays a role in cancers of the esophagus, stomach, and pancreas but the most common, and deadly, cancer caused by cigarette smoking is lung concern. Infrequently a person who does not smoke can get lung cancer, sometimes from secondhand smoke, but a smoker is ten times as likely to develop lung cancer. Heavy smokers are forty times as likely. The signs for this disease include a chronic cough, unplanned weight loss, increased difficulty breathing, always being tired, pain in the chest that does not seem to ever go away and the worst one, coughing up blood. If a smoker has a couple of these symptoms, or notices blood in the phlegm they cough up, they should see their health care provider immediately. If caught early enough then there is some hope of a cure. The good news is that if the smoker quits then after fifteen years of being a non-smoker their risk reduces to that of someone who has never smoked.
The fact is that with the high risk of cancer that smokers suffer it is only common sense to quit. Take a look at all that there is in your life and you will realize that it is not worth risking giving those things up by continuing to smoke and tempt fate.