Lung cancer - small cell

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Adenocarcinoma	Adenocarcinoma - chest X-ray	Bronchial cancer - chest X-ray	Bronchial cancer - CT scan
Bronchoscope	Bronchoscopy	Large cell carcinoma	Lung cancer, frontal chest X-ray
Lung cancer, lateral chest X-ray	Lung cancer - chemotherapy treatment	Lungs	Lung with squamous cell cancer - CT scan
Normal lungs and alveoli	Respiratory system	Secondhand Smoke and Lung Cancer	Small cell carcinoma
Smoking hazards	Squamous cell carcinoma

Small cell lung cancer (SCLC) is a fast-growing type of lung cancer. It tends to spread much more quickly than non-small cell lung cancer.

There are three different types of small cell lung cancer:

• Small cell carcinoma (oat cell cancer)
• Mixed small cell/large cell carcinoma
• Combined small cell carcinoma

Most small cell lung cancers are the oat cell type.

Cancer - lung - small cell; Small cell lung cancer; SCLC

About 15% of all lung cancer cases are small cell lung cancer, according to the American Cancer Society. Small cell lung cancer is a bit more common in men than women.

Smoking almost always causes small cell lung cancer. This type of lung cancer is rare in those who have never smoked.

Small cell lung cancer usually starts in the air tubes (bronchi) in the center of the chest. Although the cancer cells are small, they grow quickly and create large masses (tumors) that can rapidly spread to other parts of the body, including the brain, liver, and bone.

Review Date: 07/31/2006
Reviewed By: Rita Nanda, M.D., Department of Medicine, Section of Hematology/Oncology, University of Chicago Medical Center, Chicago, IL. Review provided by VeriMed Healthcare Network.