Paul writes:
I have a lesion in one lung that is approximately 12 mm. What is the relationship between lesion size and the risk of it being lung cancer?
Dear Paul:
In the Advice Column, I answered a question titled "“Would Blood Tests Show if Lung Cancer is Present?” in which I discussed how lung cancer develops. Here is an excerpt from that article:
"In normal cell division (during DNA replication), the telomeres are shortened (i.e. a portion of the telomere is lost). When telomeres are shortened to the point that they cannot form t-loops, the cell remains in an un-dividing state and eventually dies. This is the natural process that occurs when disease is not present.
However, when telomerase is in excess, the normal shortening process of telomere sequences is restricted (i.e. they never get to the un-dividing state), which ultimately prevents the natural process of cell death from occurring. When cellular death is prevented, the cell continues to divide infinitely. The result is a malignant (cancer) or benign tumor."
Tumors, large and small, can develop within the lung. There is no correlation between the size of the tumor and whether it is malignant or benign. In order to make a definitive diagnosis, a lung biopsy would need to be performed.
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