A lung nodule is a soft, harmless, and non-cancerous growth that can be seen during an X-ray of the upper chest
These scans are often done for reasons such as chest x-rays to check your lungs if you already have some symptoms, or for certain lung cancers. Most lung nodules found on X-rays are usually not cancerous.
Lung nodules are common in the upper chest area and they are found in many different places. They occur more often in people with asbestos exposure. It has been shown that asbestos causes mesothelioma, but studies have also shown that lung nodulocystic nodules can be caused by asbestos. Asbestos can affect any tissue, including the bones and the blood cells.
Lung nodules can be benign (non-cancerous), malignant (cancerous), or the result of a viral infection (asthma). It is not uncommon for people with lung infections to also have nodules of the lung.
Symptoms of a lung infection include cough, fever, persistent fatigue, wheezing, and abdominal pain. If you've been diagnosed with asthma, your doctor may order an ultrasound scan of your lungs to determine if you have an obstruction of your lungs or airways. This is done to see if the disease is causing your symptoms.
When scanning your lungs, your doctor will often look at x-rays of your chest for signs of an existing nodule. Sometimes nothing is visible on a chest x-ray, but if there is an airway obstruction or pneumonia, the doctor will do additional tests, including a chest CT scan or throat x-ray, to rule out pneumonia or pleural effusion.
Sometimes doctors do a chest CT scan to rule out lung cancer, especially if the patient has unusual chest pain, cough, shortness of breath, or unexplained weight loss. A chest X-ray is usually used to examine patients with acute respiratory failure or pneumonia in the lungs. However, if a lung scan finds nothing, your doctor may do an ultrasound scan of your lungs to determine if you have an obstruction in your lung.
The presence of a lung nodule in one of the lungs is not always conclusive as to whether the patient has cancer. Often it is only the location where the nodule is located that makes it an indicator of cancer or not.
There are other things that cause the lungs to become inflamed, which can be the source of cancer or not. Therefore, if you have a nodular mass, you should schedule an appointment with your physician.
The treatment of a nodular mass in the lung may vary depending on the cause of the nodular cancer. For example, if the tumor is related to asthma, the doctor may use anti-inflammatory medication such as prednisone, which has the effect of shrinking the nodular mass.
Chemotherapy is another option for treating nodular cancer. It uses a form of medication called an anti-angiogenic to kill off the cancer cells. Chemotherapy can also be used in conjunction with surgery, which is called lung resection or pericardectomy.