Lung cancer Archive

Most cases of chest pain don't signal heart problems. While chest discomfort of any kind should never be ignored, many conditions can trigger it. These include gastroesophageal reflux disease, gallstones, asthma, ulcers, anxiety, COVID, esophagus spasms, costochondritis, pulmonary embolism, pleurisy, aortic dissection, and pericarditis. Chest pain is likely to be unrelated to the heart if it's brief, triggered by eating, doesn't worsen with exercise, occurs only with movement, coughing, or breathing deeply, or it's localized to one spot.

Thousands of miles of veins throughout the body bring blood to the lungs to pick up oxygen and nutrients, and get rid of carbon dioxide before returning to the heart to be pumped out again. How do veins work, what problems can occur, and how can you keep these vital blood vessels healthy?

The human body has excess capacity — that is, our organs have more reserve than most of us will ever need. Why are we built with this natural redundancy? And which body parts can safely fail or be removed without impairing health?

According to a 2023 observational study, greater cardiorespiratory fitness in men was linked to a lower risk of death from colon, lung, or prostate cancer.

RSV is a common virus that just causes cold symptoms for most people. But for infants up to eight months, and for babies and young children with certain health problems, it can be very dangerous. A new immune-boosting shot may help.

Respiratory syncytial virus, or RSV, is the leading cause of bronchiolitis and pneumonia in children under a year old. Usually, cases drop in spring and summer, but the pattern is changing and parents should be watchful.

Pulmonary hypertension—a serious illness that affects the lungs and heart—has many possible causes, including a range of diseases and underlying conditions, as well genetic mutations and exposure to certain drugs. It is challenging to diagnose and treat, but a novel experimental drug that targets one form of the disease appears promising. The drug, called sotatercept, targets one of the dysregulated pathways that causes pulmonary arterial hypertension—one specific form of the disease.

Climate change has made life-threatening heat waves increasingly common across the globe. Anyone with health issues will have a more difficult time in extreme heat, including older people and people with diabetes, heart disease, asthma, and other conditions. Be prepared by knowing how to identify and treat heat-related illness, and how to plan for hot days.