You may have heard of HER2-positive breast cancer. You may not know that this gene can also play a role in lung cancer. And anti-HER2 medications may be useful in treating the world’s most common cancer.

Asbestos is a known cancer-causing agent. It was banned in the United States in the 1970s, but can still be found in old insulation and other building materials. People who have been exposed to asbestos are at higher risk of respiratory diseases, including lung cancer.

Finding lung cancer at its earliest stages, when there is still the chance of a cure, is a problem. Regular CT scans can detect such cancers in older smokers who’ve smoked the equivalent of a pack a day for 30 years.

Foods made from soybeans have been controversial. That’s because soy products have a substance that’s very much like estrogen. A recent study showed that soy foods may help some cancer patients live longer.

In the cancer world, a protein called Hsp90 is a bad actor. It helps a number of different cancers survive and thrive. An experimental medication may become Hsp90’s worst nightmare.

The number of Americans who smoke has fallen dramatically over the last several decades. Despite this progress, an estimated 43 million still light up. But increased screening could save thousands of lives.

Findings of the National Lung Screening Trial (NLST) showed that screening long-term smokers of certain ages could reduce lung cancer deaths by 20 percent. Recommendations have been developed based on the results of this trial.

At what point should tests be considered positive for cancer? This may sound like a silly question. Physician scientists, however, don’t have a solid answer when it comes to lung cancer.

Lung cancer is the number one cause of cancer-related deaths for both men and women in the United States. For women in Europe, breast cancer is their biggest death threat – but not for long.

Living beyond lung cancer is generally tied to the stage at which it’s detected. But what if survival rates weren’t tied to time of diagnosis, but rather where you lived?