Smoking : i've been smoking for about a year (i'm 18).i smoke about 8 cigarettes a day.these past few weeks i've noticed some mild cough.should i see a specialist?should i get a scan to check for tumors?

Smoking for a year won't give you lung cancer. At your age, the nicotine in the mix will trigger changes in your prefrontal cortex (brain) that will make it difficult to stop. Cough is a protective reflex that helps the lung bring up debris/mucus from deep inside to clean it. Autopsy specimens of smokers lungs are stained a charcoal color. Eventually (decades) smoking may trigger a variety of ill

Please try to quit. The more that you smoke and the longer that you smoke, the more risk that complications may occur. Your symptoms are consistent with a smokers cough and possible COPD. Please obtain Pulmonary testing and evaluation. A virtual consult with Healthtap is available.