Boots WebMD Partners in Health
Symptoms|Medicines|Conditions
Return To Boots

Lung cancer health centre

Lung cancer overview

Lung cancer is the second most common type of cancer in the UK. Lung cancer and smoking often, but not always, go hand in hand. There usually are no signs or early symptoms of lung cancer. As lung cancer stages advance, lung cancer symptoms may include coughing, weight loss, shortness of breath and bloody mucus. Treatment for lung cancer depends on the stage of the disease but can include surgery, chemotherapy and/or radiotherapy.

Select a chapter

Latest headlines

Hormones raise risk of lung cancer death

The hormone replacement therapy taken by millions of women to relieve hot flushes and other symptoms of menopause may raise the risk of dying from lung cancer, researchers say.

Read full article

Top stories

Understanding lung cancer - symptoms

What are the symptoms of lung cancer?

In its early stages, lung cancer does not normally have any symptoms. When symptoms start to appear, they are usually caused by blocked breathing passages or the spread of cancer to other parts of the body.

Symptoms can include:

Understanding lung cancer - symptoms