What should I do about dry cough and wheezing caused by lung cancer?

Written by An Yong Peng
Pulmonology
Updated on February 12, 2025
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Patients with lung cancer presenting with dry cough and wheezing often require treatment to suppress coughing, alleviate wheezing, and address the symptoms. It is also important to check if the patient has concurrent obstructive pneumonia. Lung cancer combined with obstructive pneumonia can also lead to dry cough and wheezing. In such cases, anti-infection treatment is needed, along with treatment specifically targeting lung cancer itself. Dry cough and wheezing in lung cancer often suggest that the cancer may be in the middle to late stages, where the chances of surgery are generally small. However, it is still necessary to complete relevant examinations to further assess the condition. If the patient is eligible for surgery, surgical treatment should be considered. If the patient is indeed in the middle to late stages of lung cancer and is not suitable for surgery, chemotherapeutic drugs are needed for treatment. Sometimes, targeted drugs can be chosen for treating advanced-stage non-small cell lung cancer. In cases of advanced non-small cell lung cancer with driver gene mutations, targeted therapy might even be the preferred treatment option.

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Does shoulder pain mean lung cancer?

The most common cause of shoulder pain is chronic strain of the ligaments and muscles in the shoulder, not lung cancer. Lung cancer accounts for only a small portion of the reasons. If a patient has lung cancer, it can spread to the shoulder, or the lung cancer itself can produce a type of referred pain, which can cause shoulder pain. To determine the cause, it is necessary to go to the hospital for an X-ray of the shoulder joint or a plain chest film, as well as an MRI of the shoulder joint, to clarify the cause of the shoulder pain. If the pain is solely due to the muscles or ligaments in the shoulder, it can be relieved through conservative treatments such as massage, acupuncture, electrotherapy, and magnetotherapy.

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What is good to eat for lung cancer?

For dietary recommendations regarding lung cancer, the first suggestion is to maintain a regular diet and lifestyle with a routine schedule, focusing on easy-to-digest and absorbable foods. The second suggestion is to enhance nutrition intake, for instance, by consuming more eggs, milk, and other high animal protein foods, such as quality protein sources. The third suggestion is to eat more healthy green foods, such as vegetables and fruits, focusing on fresh items. The fourth point is to advise against smoking and drinking alcohol, and to consume fewer irritating foods.

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How to treat dry cough caused by lung cancer?

Dry cough is a very common symptom in clinical practice, caused by many factors which are also very complex. Some patients might clearly have lung cancer. Due to the presence of lung cancer lesions, patients can experience irritating dry cough as well as symptoms like hemoptysis, chest pain, and chest tightness. It is possible that some patients do not exhibit symptoms of dry cough, perhaps due to other causes. Therefore, for dry cough, we need to identify if it is caused by lung cancer, as it often requires surgical treatment to control the symptoms. Some patients with minor lung cancer who experience dry cough might be able to control it with appropriate medications. However, to effectively control symptoms of dry cough caused by lung cancer, surgical removal is generally necessary and is the ultimate treatment plan.

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How to check for lung cancer?

How to check for lung cancer, firstly, for lung cancer screening, particularly in people over forty years old, especially smokers, it is recommended to regularly undergo low-dose spiral CT scans of the chest. Secondly, if a tumor is detected, it is suggested to proceed with enhanced CT scans, sputum cytology tests, or PET-CT. If it is confirmed that there is a tumor in the lungs, then a biopsy is needed. The biopsy can be performed under bronchoscopy, or transthoracic lung puncture and biopsy of living tissue can also be done, as well as biopsy of metastatic lesions or cytological examination of pleural effusion to diagnose whether it is lung cancer, the type of lung cancer, and certain immunohistochemical situations.

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Does lung cancer cause coughing?

The most common symptoms of lung cancer patients include coughing, followed by coughing up blood, difficulty breathing, and chest pain. When the tumor grows in larger bronchi, it often causes an irritable cough, which can easily be mistaken for a cold. As the tumor continues to grow and affects the drainage of the bronchi, secondary lung infections can occur, possibly producing purulent sputum and an increased amount of coughed-up sputum. At this time, coughing becomes quite severe. Another symptom that may appear is blood in the sputum, which could be blood-streaked sputum, or sporadic, small amounts of coughed-up blood.