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Health Information

Understanding Your Diagnosis

• How Does My Doctor Know I Have Lung Cancer?
  
• Bronchoscopy
  

  A brochosopy is a procedure in which a long, lighted scope is inserted into the lungs in order to examine the airways of the lungs and to assess lung function.

• Chest Ultrasound
  

  Chest ultrasound is a procedure in which sound wave technology is used alone, or along with other types of diagnostic methods, to examine the organs and structures of the chest.

• Computed Tomography (CT or CAT) Scan of the Chest
  

  CT/CAT scans are more detailed than standard x-rays and are often used to assess the organs of the respiratory and cardiovascular systems,and esophagus, for injuries, abnormalities, or disease.

• How Your Doctor Uses Biopsies to Make a Diagnosis of Lung Cancer
  
• Lung Biopsy
  

  A lung biopsy is a procedure in which tissue samples are removed with a special needle to determine if cancer or other abnormal cells are present.

• Pleural Biopsy
  

  A pleural biopsy is a procedure in which a sample of the pleura (the membrane that surrounds the lungs) is removed with a special biopsy needle or during surgery to determine if disease, infection, or cancer is present.

• Mediastinoscopy
  

  A mediastinoscopy is a surgical procedure performed to examine the mediastinum - the space behind the sternum (breastbone) in the middle of the chest that separates the two lungs.

• Thoracentesis
  

  Thoracentesis is a procedure in which a needle is inserted through the back of the chest wall to remove fluid or air from between the lungs and the interior chest wall.

• Tests That Help Evaluate Lung Cancer
  

  Treatment for lung cancer usually begins a few weeks after diagnosis. This gives patients time to talk with their doctor about treatment choices, to get a second opinion, to decide about treatment, and to prepare themselves and their loved ones.

• I’ve Just Been Told I Have Lung Cancer
  
• Lung Cancer Introduction
  
• Stages of Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer
  
• Stages of Small Cell Lung Cancer
  
• Can I Survive Lung Cancer? What Is My Prognosis?
  
• Advances in Early Detection of Lung Cancer
  

  The lack of effective methods for early detection of lung cancer is one of the reasons that most people diagnosed with lung cancer have advanced disease, and fewer than fifteen percent of these patients will survive more than five years.