Early screening is the best weapon for fighting lung cancer

LUNG cancer remains the Philippines’ number one cause of cancer deaths among men and number three among women, topped only by cancers of the breast and the cervix, according to a report by the Philippine Council for Health Research and Development.

The biggest factor determining lung cancer risk is smoking. A whop- ping 80 percent to 90 percent of lung cancer incidences are estimated to be smoking related.

But what if, without you knowing it, prevention is no longer an option?

This is what happened to the father of TV and media personality Diego Castro that prompted him to become an ambassador of the multistakeholder movement, “Hope from Within: Test, Talk, and Take Action” – a lung cancer awareness, education, and prevention campaign.

Diego’s father, renowned broadcast anchor Angelo Castro Jr., passed away from lung cancer in 2013.

important for those at high risk to get screened so that the disease can be addressed immediately, according to Dr. Ivy de Dios, oncology medical adviser of global biopharmaceutical company MSD in the Philippines.

American Cancer Society recommends yearly lung cancer screening to people aged 55 to 74 years old, who have smoked 1 pack per day for 30 years or 2 packs a day for 15 years, and whose last cigarette was smoked less than 15 years ago.