NCLEX Review & Nursing School

Lung Cancer

– is the leading cause of cancer death among men and women.  There are two main types:

• SMALL CELL OR OAT CELL LUNG CANCER- ACCOUNTS FOR A SMALLER TYOE (15%- 20%) OF ALL LUNG CANCERS.  IT IS STAGED ACCORDING TO TUMOR TYPE, NODE INVOLVEMENT, AND THE EXTENT OF METASTASIS (TPN).  SMALL CELL LUNG CANCER IS VERY AGGRESSIVE AND HAS A VERY LOW SURVIVAL RATE.
• NON SMALL CELL LUNG CANCER- ACCOUNTS FOR ABOUT 80% OF ALL LUNG CANCERS

Risk Factors
– Smoking is the # 1 factor

ASSESSMENT

• Persistent Chronic Cough
• Dyspnea and Wheezing
• Losing weight
• Loss of appetite
• Shortness of breath
• Wheezing
• Lethargy

DIAGNOSTICS:
Bronchoscopy
Biopsy

THORACENTESIS
– is the withdrawal of fluid from the pleural cavity

♦ A chest x-ray will be performed before and after the test.
♣ Tell pt. to  not cough, breathe deeply, or move during the test to avoid injury to the lung.

Client Position: usually on the side of the bed with the arms and head over the bedside table.

With thoracentesis there is the risk of:

• Bleeding
• Fluid buildup in the lungs
• Infection
• Pneumothorax
• Pulmonary edema
• Respiratory distress 

Treatment:  (for lung cancer)

• Chemotherapy

SURGERY:

* often the treatment for patients with non-small cell lung cancer that has not spread beyond nearby lymph nodes.

• One of the lobes of the lung (lobectomy)
• Only a small part of the lung (wedge or segment removal)
• The entire lung (pneumonectomy)

Radiation therapy can be used with chemotherapy if surgery is not possible.