By Summer Tadlock | February 5, 2020 at 11:58 AM CST – Updated February 5 at 12:14 PM
JACKSON, Miss. (WLBT) – Every week, 20 million people tune in to listen to conservative Rush Limbaugh’s talk show.
So how common is it? And what can you look out for?
“Lung cancer is the number one cancer killer,” Dr. Pierre de Delva said. “It kills more people then colon, breast and prostate cancer combined.”
For more than two decades, conservative radio host Rush Limbaugh has shared life’s greatest achievements and challenges with his audience: everything from sports and politics, and current events. To some, Limbaugh is like a best friend you’ve never met.
Recently, the 69-year-old made one of the hardest announcements yet.
He faces a long road ahead of battling advanced lung cancer.
“In the tragedy of having a celebrity develop a cancer, it brings awareness of the problem,” de Delva said. “If Rush Limbaugh is public about his diagnosis, I think it’s because he wants others to know how terrible this disease is.”
Lung Cancer claims the lives of thousands of Americans each year.
“It is one of THE deadliest Cancers.”
Dr. Pierre de Delva is an associate professor of thoracic surgery with the University of Mississippi Medical Center.
“People call it a silent killer,” he said. “By the time patients develop symptoms, typically it is already at a stage that is difficult to cure and treat.”
- Chronic Cough
- Coughing up Blood
- Constant Chest Pain
- Hoarseness or wheezing
- Frequent lung infections and
- Shortness of Breath.
And the biggest risk factor for lung cancer is bad news for smokers.
“Smoking is one of the highest drivers for disease in the world,” de Dalva said. “It causes lung cancer, head and neck cancer, bladder cancer, stomach cancer, kidney cancer…”
Other factors include having a family history of lung cancer, exposure to second-hand smoke, and genetics.
The challenge with lung cancer is tackling it early on.
If lung cancer is caught in it’s early stages, there’s options for patients.
“Standard of care would be surgery and removal of lung. However, some patients have significant lung disease related to smoking where they can’t tolerate removal of the lung.”
And if a patient is diagnosed with a more aggressive stage of cancer…
“Things like targeted therapy and immunotherapy have been great advancements for patients with advanced disease. It has brought hope for patients where there wasn’t hope before.”
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