Fatigue
Fatigue for people with cancer is different from tiredness, as it does not go away with rest or sleep. It is possible to lose interest in things that bring joy, feel extremely tired without any physical activity, or find it hard to concentrate.
Difficulty sleeping
Getting a good night’s sleep is important for maintaining energy levels, reducing fatigue and improving the mood. Pain, breathlessness, anxiety or depression can make it hard to sleep. Some medicine can also disrupt sleep. If there were sleep problems before the lung cancer diagnosis, they could become worse.
Finger clubbing
Finger clubbing means there are certain changes in the shape of the fingers and fingernails. It usually affects the top of the fingers on both hands, and can also affect the toes.
Finger clubbing seems to happen in stages:
- Softening of the base of the nail and redness of the skin around the nail;
- An increase in the angle between the nail bed and the nail fold (the skin just below the cuticle), which causes the nail to curve more than usual;
- A shiny appearance of the nail and the skin around it, and ridges along the length of the nail;
- An enlargement of the ends of the fingers, giving the ‘clubbed’ appearance.
The exact cause of this condition is not clear. It may be due to cells from the bone marrow getting stuck in narrow blood vessels of the fingertips, where they start to release growth factors which stimulate blood vessel and tissue growth along with a build-up of fluid in the tissue of the fingers.
