Procedures
In addition to surgery, or in place of it, you may also be given radiation therapy, which uses high-energy rays to kill cancer cells. Radiation serves several purposes. Before surgery, it can shrin your tumour; after surgery, it may aid in killing any leftover cancer in lymph nodes. If you have early-stage non-small cell cancer but can't undergo surgery, radiation may be a good alternative, and can even eliminate the tumour. For stage 3 and 4 small cell cancer and for cancer recuurence, radiation can be effective at shrinking tumours and reducing symptoms such as pain, bleeding and difficulty swallowing. It also lengthens survival in people with limited small cell lung cancer when combined with chemotherapy. And if lung cancer has spread to your brain, it may also be treated with radiation (see Brain tumour). Try to find a facility that uses a CT scan to guide the procedure, as it shields the unaffected lung from unnecessary radiation.
If a tumour obstructs the tube leading to the lungs (the bronchus), your doctor may suggest brachytherapy in which radioactive seeds are inserted directly into the tumour site for a few minutes. Laser therapy and photodynamic therapy are also options, but rarely such a cancer. When cancer has spread, the best treatment may be external-beam radiation, which uses several beams of radiation from outside the body. A newer technique, which is called 3-D conformalradiation therapy, provides a three-dimensional image of the tumour for the doctor to target, making it easier to avoid damaging normal tissue. For certain tumours, your doctor may order continuous hyperfractionated accelerated radiotherapy (CHART), a regimen of two or three treatments daily that reduces the overall duration of treatment. In one study, people with localised cancer who had CHART had a 24 percent lower death rate than those getting standard radiation.
SURGICAL OPTIONS FOR LUNG CANCER
1) Wedge resection 2) segment resection 3) Lobectomy 4) Pneumonectomy
The extend of lung cancer surgery usually depends on the size of the tumour and how much it has spread. 1) For very small tumours, a wedge resection procedure removes only a part of the lobe that contains the tumour. 2) if the tumour is bigger, segment resection removes a larger part of a lobe. 3) For a larger mass, a lobectomy removes one lobe of the lung (your right lung has three lobes and the left has two0. 4) A pneumonectomy, performed when a lobectomy can't be done, removes an entire lung (you need only one to live).
PROMISING DEVELOPMENTS
Clinical trials are research studies conducted on new drugs and procedures as well as new ways to use existing therapies. By taking part in a clinical trial you may benefit from cutting-edge research before treatments are widely available. For information on clinical trials, talk to your oncologist.
Clinical trials for lung cancer include these categories:
With stage 1 or 2 cancer, if you have surgery to remove the growth, you may not need chemotherapy (oral or intravenously administered cancer-cell killing drugs) to ensure a good chance to survival. At later stages, however, chemotherapy can help by eradicating microscopic nests of cancer in other parts of the body. Chemotherapy is also the standard method for temporarily controlling small cell lung cancer, which is notorious for spreading. It may also be used to reduce symptoms in the advanced stages of non-small cell lung cancer. Typically, cisplatin or carboplatin, both platinum compounds, are combined with other drugs including etoposide (VePesid) and paclitaxel (Taxol). Chemotherapy often causes temporary nausea, fatigue and hair loss, and can make you more prone to injections; drugs can be used to minimise these side effects.
If you can't use or don't want standard treatment, consider joining a clinical trial (see box above). Finally, many people experience pain from lung cancer treatments or from the spread of the disease. If this occurs, ask your doctor for painkilling medications.
Lifestyle changes
One good way to have an active hand in your own treatment is to commit yourself to the following strategies.
In addition to surgery, or in place of it, you may also be given radiation therapy, which uses high-energy rays to kill cancer cells. Radiation serves several purposes. Before surgery, it can shrin your tumour; after surgery, it may aid in killing any leftover cancer in lymph nodes. If you have early-stage non-small cell cancer but can't undergo surgery, radiation may be a good alternative, and can even eliminate the tumour. For stage 3 and 4 small cell cancer and for cancer recuurence, radiation can be effective at shrinking tumours and reducing symptoms such as pain, bleeding and difficulty swallowing. It also lengthens survival in people with limited small cell lung cancer when combined with chemotherapy. And if lung cancer has spread to your brain, it may also be treated with radiation (see Brain tumour). Try to find a facility that uses a CT scan to guide the procedure, as it shields the unaffected lung from unnecessary radiation.
If a tumour obstructs the tube leading to the lungs (the bronchus), your doctor may suggest brachytherapy in which radioactive seeds are inserted directly into the tumour site for a few minutes. Laser therapy and photodynamic therapy are also options, but rarely such a cancer. When cancer has spread, the best treatment may be external-beam radiation, which uses several beams of radiation from outside the body. A newer technique, which is called 3-D conformalradiation therapy, provides a three-dimensional image of the tumour for the doctor to target, making it easier to avoid damaging normal tissue. For certain tumours, your doctor may order continuous hyperfractionated accelerated radiotherapy (CHART), a regimen of two or three treatments daily that reduces the overall duration of treatment. In one study, people with localised cancer who had CHART had a 24 percent lower death rate than those getting standard radiation.
SURGICAL OPTIONS FOR LUNG CANCER
1) Wedge resection 2) segment resection 3) Lobectomy 4) Pneumonectomy
The extend of lung cancer surgery usually depends on the size of the tumour and how much it has spread. 1) For very small tumours, a wedge resection procedure removes only a part of the lobe that contains the tumour. 2) if the tumour is bigger, segment resection removes a larger part of a lobe. 3) For a larger mass, a lobectomy removes one lobe of the lung (your right lung has three lobes and the left has two0. 4) A pneumonectomy, performed when a lobectomy can't be done, removes an entire lung (you need only one to live).
PROMISING DEVELOPMENTS
- A recent study offers new hope for people who have small cell lung cancer. Patients who took a combination of CPT-11 (irinotecan, or Camptosar) and cisplatin had a 55% improvement in their one-year survival rates and were four time more likely to live two years compared to those who used the standard treatment of cisplatin and etoposide.
- Doctors are very excited about a new technique for detecting lung tumours earlier, called low-dose spiral computed tomography, or spiral CT scan. In one study of 1000 people at high risk for lung cancer, spiral CT scans found 23 early-stage tumours, standard chest X-rays picked up only four. All but one of the malignancies was removed successfully. Studies are under way to determine if this therapy should be used for widespread screening.
Clinical trials are research studies conducted on new drugs and procedures as well as new ways to use existing therapies. By taking part in a clinical trial you may benefit from cutting-edge research before treatments are widely available. For information on clinical trials, talk to your oncologist.
Clinical trials for lung cancer include these categories:
- Chemotherapy. Some studies are examining if chemotherapy drugs in use may work better combined with other drugs. Others are investingating the most effective combination of drugs and radiation. Still others look at the best ways to reduce side effects of chemo.
- Immunotherapy. Active immunotherapy tests vaccines that force your immune system to treat substances in lung cancer cells as invaders and then skill them. Passive immunotherapy uses injections of manmade antibodies with toxins attached. The antibodies seek out lung cancer cells, which the hitch-hiking toxins then kill.
- Gene therapy. Researchers are studying ways to introduce extra DNA into lung cancer cells so that your immune system can better recognise these abnormal cells and destroy them.
- Biological therapies. New drugs are regularly being tested that intefere with the growth of lung tumours. One group, called the angio-genesis inhibitors, prevents blood vessels form developing to nourish cancer cells. Another group (growth factor receptors) is intended to block harmone-like susbtances that signal cells to grow and divide. By blocking the receptors, they hinder the growth of center cells. Some of these drugs have already been approved for other types of cancer.
With stage 1 or 2 cancer, if you have surgery to remove the growth, you may not need chemotherapy (oral or intravenously administered cancer-cell killing drugs) to ensure a good chance to survival. At later stages, however, chemotherapy can help by eradicating microscopic nests of cancer in other parts of the body. Chemotherapy is also the standard method for temporarily controlling small cell lung cancer, which is notorious for spreading. It may also be used to reduce symptoms in the advanced stages of non-small cell lung cancer. Typically, cisplatin or carboplatin, both platinum compounds, are combined with other drugs including etoposide (VePesid) and paclitaxel (Taxol). Chemotherapy often causes temporary nausea, fatigue and hair loss, and can make you more prone to injections; drugs can be used to minimise these side effects.
If you can't use or don't want standard treatment, consider joining a clinical trial (see box above). Finally, many people experience pain from lung cancer treatments or from the spread of the disease. If this occurs, ask your doctor for painkilling medications.
Lifestyle changes
One good way to have an active hand in your own treatment is to commit yourself to the following strategies.
- Quit smoking. It will make your treatment more effective, improve your overall health and cut your risk of reccurence.
- Get support from family, friends, a therapist or cancer support group to help you deal with related emotional and practical issues.
- Don't ignore depression. Lung cancer and the rigorous of treatment can add up to depression. Talk to your doctor about treating it.
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