A woman with stage 4 lung cancer has opened up about the biggest lie people tell you about the disease.
The unnamed mum-of-three took to the TikTok channel Young Lung Cancer Is A Thing where she said she was approaching the one-year anniversary of her diagnosis. But before she received the bad news, she had believed that, as a non-smoker, she was not at risk.
In the video, she said: “One of the biggest lies I was taught is, if you don’t smoke cigarettes, you won’t get lung cancer. Well, I am a non-smoker, and in November of 2023 I was diagnosed with stage 4 non-small cell lung cancer.
“I have a husband and three young kids – nine, six and three – and to say that it has rocked our world and turned our life upside down would be a complete understatement. It’s been a gruelling several months, with different treatments – radiation, surgery.
“I am finally able to stop treading water under the weight of this diagnosis and can come up for air and see what’s happening in the world around me, and I’m astonished to see so many other young people who also have this diagnosis.
“As I approach my one-year mark, it feels important to turn some of this anguish into advocacy. […] I’m here to reiterate that anybody who has lungs is at risk of getting lung cancer.”
According to the US’ Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, between 10 and 20% of lung cancers occur in people who have never smoked or people who have smoked fewer than 100 cigarettes in their lifetime. This equates to about 20,000 to 40,000 diagnoses each year.
According to the NHS, the main symptoms of lung cancer are: a cough that does not go away after 3 weeks; a long-standing cough that gets worse; chest infections that keep coming back; coughing up blood; an ache or pain when breathing or coughing; persistent breathlessness; persistent tiredness or lack of energy; and loss of appetite or unexplained weight loss.
Less common symptoms can also include: changes in the appearance of your fingers, such as becoming more curved or their ends becoming larger (this is known as finger clubbing); difficulty swallowing (dysphagia) or pain when swallowing; wheezing; a hoarse voice; swelling of your face or neck; persistent chest or shoulder pain.
The health service recommends you see your GP if you have any symptoms of lung cancer, including the less common ones.