Lung cancer can also be seen in non-smokers

Experts are emphasizing that lung cancer can affect individuals who have never smoked, with passive smoking, air pollution, radon gas and environmental exposures cited as factors that raise risk. They warn that persistent symptoms such as prolonged coughing and chest pain should not be attributed to smokers alone. The message matters because it broadens the population considered at risk beyond the well-known smoking link. What to watch next is whether awareness of these non-smoking risk factors translates into earlier diagnosis among never-smokers.