Lung cancer increasingly affects women and non-smokers; one woman diagnosed three times

Lung cancer is striking an increasing number of women and individuals who have never smoked, according to the Belgian Foundation Against Cancer. The number of diagnoses among women is rising sharply, a trend that contrasts with a stabilization in new cases among men.

Projections from the Belgian Cancer Registry indicate that new lung cancer diagnoses in Belgium will climb from 9,487 in 2023 to 11,429 annually by 2035. While the incidence appears to be stabilizing in men, it has seen a significant increase in women over the past two decades. Lung cancer remains the second most common cancer for both sexes in Belgium, following prostate cancer in men and breast cancer in women.

Smoking remains the primary risk factor, estimated to cause 80 to 90 percent of lung cancers. The foundation emphasizes that combating tobacco use is the most effective long-term strategy to reduce new cases. However, the rise in diagnoses among never-smokers presents a growing concern.

Conny Salenbien, a 63-year-old from Jabbeke, exemplifies this trend. She was first diagnosed with breast and lung cancer in 2013, following a previous battle with breast cancer. After surgery and chemotherapy, she experienced a recurrence seven years later, this time with a rare ALK-positive mutation. This specific type of lung cancer, often found in light or non-smokers, is not treatable with conventional chemotherapy, radiotherapy, or immunotherapy. Salenbien is currently undergoing targeted therapy with tumor-inhibiting pills, awaiting her next check-up.

"My doctor told me I drew the short straw, and they discovered it purely by chance," Salenbien shared. The impact of living with cancer has been immense. Although she returned to work after her initial lung cancer treatment, the second diagnosis in 2020 made it impossible to continue working, a fact she deeply regrets. The foundation notes that 65 percent of lung cancer diagnoses are only made at an advanced stage.

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My doctor told me I drew the short straw, and they discovered it purely by chance.