Asthma is a common long-term condition that can affect people of all ages. It causes inflammation (swelling) in the airways, which can sometimes make it difficult to breathe.
Symptoms of asthma include:
- Runny nose and eyes
- Wheeze
- Tight chest
- Cough
- Being short of breath
- Sneezing
Breathing in substances at work can also affect the lining of the nose, causing sneezing and a runny or blocked nose. This is called rhinitis, and can be an early warning sign of work-related asthma.
Your healthcare professional will be able to give you more information about asthma.
Silicosis is a type of lung condition caused by breathing in a fine dust that is created when working with certain types of stone, rock, sand and clay, called respirable silica dust. Breathing in silica dust over a long period of time can cause lung tissue to harden or scar (fibrosis), making it harder to breathe.
Symptoms of silicosis include:
- Dry cough
- Being short of breath
- Chest pain
Your healthcare professional will be able to give you more information about silicosis.
Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a long-term condition that causes inflammation (swelling) in the lungs, damaged lung tissue and a narrowing of the airways, making breathing difficult.
Symptoms of COPD include:
- Having a cough that does not go away – you may also cough up phlegm
- Wheeze
- Tight chest
- Weight loss
- Being short of breath
- Being very tired
Your healthcare professional will be able to give you more information about COPD.
Mesothelioma is a type of cancer that starts in the covering of the lungs (pleura) and is caused by exposure to asbestos.
Symptoms of mesothelioma include:
- Being short of breath
- Cough
- Chest pain
- Losing weight for no reason
- Not feeling hungry
- Being very tired
- Clubbing (swelling) of the fingers
Your healthcare professional will be able to give you more information about mesothelioma.
Hypersensitivity pneumonitis happens when the tissue in your lungs has an allergic reaction to a substance you breathe in and become inflamed (swollen).
Symptoms of hypersensitivity pneumonitis include:
- Being short of breath
- Cough
- Fever (having a higher body temperature than is normal for you)
- Headache
- Shivering
- Being very tired
- Aching muscles and joints
Your healthcare professional will be able to give you more information about hypersensitivity pneumonitis.
Coal workers’ pneumoconiosis is caused by breathing in coal dust. Over time, the lungs become inflamed and small masses of tissue – known as nodules – form in the lungs.
Symptoms of coal workers’ pneumoconiosis include:
- Being short of breath
- Dry cough
- Chest pain
Your healthcare professional will be able to give you more information about coal workers’ pneumoconiosis.
Lung cancer is a cancer of the trachea (windpipe), bronchi (airways) or lung air sacs (alveoli).
Symptoms of lung cancer include:
- Having a cough that does not go away
- Coughing up blood, or flecks of blood, in phlegm
- Weight loss
- Being out of breath
- Not feeling hungry
- Being very tired
- Pain in the chest
- Pain in the bones
- Pain in the shoulder
- Swelling in the neck
- Muscle weakness
- Hoarseness (weak, raspy or strained voice)
- Stridor (high pitched wheezing due to a blockage in the airway)
- Clubbing (swelling) of the fingers and toes
Your healthcare professional will be able to give you more information about lung cancer.
Asbestosis is a lung condition caused by breathing in asbestos over long periods of time.
Symptoms of asbestosis include:
- Being short of breath
- Cough
- Wheeze
- Being very tired
- Pain in the chest
- Swollen fingertips
Your healthcare professional will be able to give you more information about asbestosis.