“How do I go about getting screened for lung cancer if I don't meet the requirements?”
I am 30 years old this coming 8/9. I am not proud of this by any means but I have been smoking for 21 years. As sad as it is to say in the past 21 years the only thing I haven't smoked is crack. I have been clean for 4 years as of 9/30/2017. Even though I haven't done drugs in the past four years I have never stopped smoking tobacco and marijuana. The past couple of weeks I have developed a heavy cough that causes me to cough up mucus that is black, green, and grey with bloody mucus in between coughing spells. I feel weak. I have no energy at all and I have lost an enormous amount of weight in a small period of time. I know it's possible to be overthinking this but given the knowledge of everything I am kind of scared that I could have lung cancer. I need to know how to go get a cancer screening.
Female | 29 years old
Complaint duration: 2 weeks
2 Answers
You are wise to wish to begin screening, not only for lung cancer, but for COPD. An appointment with a pulmonologist would be a great start. They will likely start with a chest X-ray and pulmonary function testing.
Screening is for asymptomatic patients. Since you have symptoms, you should be evaluated by a physician for the cause of the symptoms. If a CT chest is part of that evaluation, the CT chest will be the best study to evaluate for possible lung cancer.
George Horng, MD
George Horng, MD
