Doctors urge screening as 800 people develop lung cancer yearly

About 800 people in Upper Austria develop lung cancer each year, ORF reports. Specialists are calling for more early detection, saying treatment is much more likely to succeed when the disease is diagnosed early.

Lung cancer is the most common cause of cancer deaths. In its early stages, it often causes no symptoms, said Christopher Lambers, a pulmonologist at Ordensklinikum Linz Elisabethinen, a hospital in Linz. Tumours are therefore often found by chance during X-rays or routine check-ups.

Advanced lung cancer can cause bleeding, coughing up blood, severe coughing, chest pain, weight loss or heavy night sweats, Lambers said. Many patients are not diagnosed until the disease has progressed.

When lung cancer is detected and treated early, the chance of a cure is more than 90 percent, according to Lambers. The Linz hospital is among the first in Austria to use robot-assisted surgery. Lambers said operations are becoming less invasive and more protective of tissue, while radiation therapy has also become more precise.

Smoking and exposure to second-hand smoke are the main risk factors. Asbestos, certain chemicals and fine particles from traffic and industry can also increase the risk. Genetic predisposition may contribute as well.

The disease most often affects people aged 50 to 70, but it can occur at any age. Lambers said he also treats younger patients.

Austria does not currently have a nationwide lung cancer screening programme. A pilot project in Vienna offers screening to people at increased risk, and specialists have called for a national programme.