Mistaken for Aging... "Half of Patients with Acute Exacerbation Die Within 3 Years"

[Anchor]

If you experience severe shortness of breath when climbing stairs and a persistent cough, you should suspect Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD). Although it is ranked as the 9th leading cause of death in South Korea, both diagnosis and treatment are challenging.

Reporter Han Sung-hee has the story.

[Reporter]

Park Sang-yong, a 67-year-old apartment security guard who smoked a pack of cigarettes a day for over 40 years and was exposed to exhaust fumes while working as a truck driver for a decade, was diagnosed with COPD four years ago.

[Park Sang-yong/COPD Patient: (Around the time of diagnosis) When I walked up hills or carried heavy loads, I would get unusually short of breath compared to others.]

The lungs are known as an organ that is difficult to recover, but thanks to early detection and treatment, his daily life is no longer as burdensome.

[Park Sang-yong/COPD Patient: (Before treatment) I used to gasp for air, but now, I feel almost like a normal person and don't get very short of breath at all.]

The number of COPD patients in South Korea is estimated to reach 3 million, and if left untreated, it can lead to acute exacerbation and death.

Statistics show that 50% of patients hospitalized due to acute exacerbation pass away within three years, and 75% die within seven years.

While the primary symptoms include significant shortness of breath during physical activity, as well as persistent coughing or phlegm, many people dismiss these as signs of aging.

This makes early diagnosis quite difficult.

A lung function test to identify COPD measures the amount of air exhaled after taking a deep breath. I will try it myself.

[(Take another breath, and blow. Whoosh! Keep blowing. Take another breath.) This is really difficult.]

Because diagnosis requires a dedicated clinical pathologist and significant time is needed to explain the testing and treatment methods, many clinics avoid performing the test.

[Moon Ji-yong/Professor of Pulmonology and Allergy at Konkuk University Medical Center: There are many primary care clinics where lung function tests are not available, so treatment is mainly conducted at the hospital level or higher.]

In South Korea, where air pollution levels are relatively high, 13% of patients have never smoked. It is important for those with suspected symptoms to visit a hospital and undergo a lung function test.

(Reported by Kim Han-gyul | Video by Jang Hyun-ki)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.