Deciding not to share any details of his lung cancer diagnosis, for Lock, his second time battle with cancer was sadly entirely different.
Cancer Research UK explains that advanced lung cancer refers to cancer that has spread from where it started in the lung. It is also known as metastatic cancer. For some individuals this type of cancer might also cause fluid that contains cancer cells to collect around the lung. This is called fluid on the lung or a pleural effusion.
Unfortunately advanced cancer can’t usually be cured. However, treatment might control it, help symptoms, and improve an individuals quality of life for some time. A cancer might be advanced when it is first diagnosed. Or it may come back some time after you were first treated, this is referred to as recurrent cancer.
The NHS explains that lung cancer is one of the “most common and serious” types of cancer. It affects around 47,000 people every year, and although these are not all at an advanced stage, the cancer always has a risk of spreading to other nearby areas such as:
- Nearby lymph nodes
- The brain
- Bones
- The liver
- The adrenal glands (small hormone glands just above your kidney)
- Other parts of the lung or the other lung.