Lung Cancer Treatment

  • Lung Cancer
    Lung cancer or carcinoma of the lung is uncontrolled cell growth in tissues of the lung, usually in the cells lining the air passages. It is the leading cause of death due to cancer worldwide. Lung cancer is strongly related to cigarette smoking. 90% of lung cancer is caused by smoking though non-smokers can also have lung cancer.
Submitted by PatientsEngage on 28 September 2015

Treatment of non-small cell lung cancer:

Surgery
Surgery is the treatment of choice in NSCLC that has not spread beyond the lung. The goal of surgery is to remove the lung tumour along with the lymph nodes in the chest. The surgeon will remove the tumour with surrounding normal lung tissue. During surgery, serious complications such as excess bleeding, wound infection and pneumonia can occur. Following surgery, patients may experience difficult breathing, shortness of breath, pain and weakness.

Depending on the size and location of the tumour, the surgeon may decide on one of the following surgical procedures:

  • Wedge resection: Removal of the lung cancer with a margin of healthy lung tissue around the cancer
  • Lobectomy: Lobe of the lung is removed even if the tumour is small, such as in early stage cancer
  • Segmentectomy: Removal of a large part of the lung
  • Pneumonectomy: If the tumour is close to the chest, the entire lung is removed

Radiation therapy
In Radiation therapy, high-energy rays or particles are used to kill cancer cells. Radiation therapy can be used before surgery to reduce the size of the tumour or after surgery to kill cancer cells that have been left behind after surgery. Radiation therapy can be used to relieve local symptoms such as pain, bleeding or obstruction. There are two types of radiation therapy:

External beam radiation therapy is administered from outside the body, aimed directly on the tumour.
In Brachytherapy, radioactive material is placed inside the body, near the tumour. Brachytherapy is sometimes used to relieve symptoms in airways caused by tumour. Common short-term side effects of radiation are tiredness, nausea, vomiting, hair loss or sunburn-like skin.

Chemotherapy
 In chemotherapy, drugs are used to kill cancer cells. Chemotherapy is used in combination with surgery and radiation therapy. Chemotherapy is the main form of treatment in advanced cancer or in patients who are not fit for surgery. Common short-term side effects are tiredness, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, mouth sores, loss of appetite, hair loss, risk of infection or low blood count.

Targeted Therapy
In targeted therapy, drugs are used which specifically seek cancer cells via biomarkers and destroy them. Therefore there is less damage to normal cells as compared to chemotherapy. It is used most in patients with advanced stage lung cancer and with certain biomarkers. Drugs used include Erlotinib, Afatinib, Geftinib, Bevacizumab, Ceritinib and Crizotinib.

Immunotherapy

In this therapy, the body's own immune system is used to fight the cancer cells.  Four main types of drugs that are used fall under Monoclonal antibodies,  Checkpoint inhibitors, Vaccines and Adoptive T-cell transfer.

Must Read: Targeted Therapies are the latest weapon for Lung Cancer

Treatment of small cell lung cancer

Small cell lung cancers are rapidly growing cancers and are generally widespread in the body at the time of diagnosis. Chemotherapy is the treatment of choice in most of the SCLC. Surgery is recommended only if the tumour is small and there is no evidence of spread to the lymph nodes. In limited stage SCLC, chemotherapy is combined with radiotherapy.

Community
Cancer
Condition
Lung Cancer

Stories

  • New Drugs Kept My Mom Alive for 4 More Years
    Amit Mohile, whose mother passed away in December 2018 due to rare ALK positive lung cancer, shares with us her diagnosis, disease and the difficult times. Could you tell us a little about your mother’s condition? What were her early symptoms? My mother, Jyoti Mohile, was 51 years old when she was diagnosed with lung cancer. There were no early symptoms as the cancer was rare. She was healthy lady who practised yoga regularly and ran a small office. Suddenly, a month prior to diagnosis, she…
  • Did I get Lung Cancer because I am Asian?
    Shailaja Asave, a non-smoker, who developed lung cancer at 67, believed to be due to a gene mutation prevalent in Asian women, is undergoing targeted therapy and living each day to the fullest. Read about her diagnosis, treatment and unbeatable spirit. When were you detected with lung cancer? Last year in February 2017. It was already in the advanced stage, what is called Stage IV. What were your initial symptoms? I had a persistent dry cough for 3 months which did not go away with anti-allergy…
  • A doctor on the right with a stethoscope and a woman on the left looking at a scan of lungs.
    Targeted Therapies Are The Latest Weapon For Lung Cancer
    Dr Kumar Prabhash, Prof. Medical Oncology, Tata Memorial Hospital, Mumbai, gives insights into the different types and stages of lung cancer and outlines the benefits of targeted therapy as treatment. How many different types of lung cancer are there? Earlier lung cancer was classified only into two major types: Small cell lung cancers (SCLC) and Non-small cell lung cancers (NSCLC), based upon the microscopic appearance of the tumor cells. These two different types of cancers grow, spread as…
  • Frontal shot of a dark haired and bearded person
    My Humble Request To All: Please Give Up Smoking
    Atabuddin Mondal,53 from Chakdaha, West Bengal has been suffering from Bronchogenic Carcinoma, and is now in a better form after going through chemotherapy cycles. He shares his experiences of handling the Big C. Please tell us about your condition. I have been suffering from Lung Cancer. When were you diagnosed? I was diagnosed on 25/02/2018 with Bronchogenic carcinoma,1st stage. What were the early symptoms? Being addicted to smoking, first came the change in voice and then I had a…
  • Stock image of a woman in blue scarf in the foreground and a group of people in the background pointing to her
    "Its Time For Film Characters That Survive Cancer!"
    Cancer stigmas are often barriers for seeking diagnosis, as well as treatment and rehabilitation. Shubha Maudgal and Susmitra Mitra of Cancer Patients Aid Association (CPAA), Mumbai give us an insight into the current taboos surrounding cancer and the challenges such stigmas pose for patients and society. 1. What does cancer stigma entail? There are two kinds of stigma involved with cancer. One is Self which is in the mind of patients themselves, stemming from guilt or shame.  The other is…
  • Bad Death Avoidable with Palliative Care
    Specialty palliative care, in contrast to standard oncology care, can provide an extra layer of support for patients with lung cancer and their families. Dr Rajam Iyer, a pulmonologist and strong proponent of palliative care, enumerates its benefits for lung cancer patients. What is palliative care for lung cancer? In India, lung cancer constitutes 6.9 per cent of all new cancer cases and 9.3 per cent of all cancer related deaths in both sexes. At the time of…
  • My Experience Is Going To Be What My Experience Is Going To Be
    Sunil Dutta, a writer and a poet has found that accepting death, being curious rather than fearful helps in dealing with the diagnosis and treatment of lung cancer. He finds solace in Ghalib and Zauk. Sunil Dutta stared at a scan of his lungs. Hundreds of tiny nodules melded together into a snow-white mass — each pockmark occupying what was once healthy tissue. A normal lung scan is mostly dark grey hues, with a few white spots indicating abnormalities. This was something entirely different. “…
  • Image of a man with a mask in a polluted city.
    Air pollution is a Public Health Problem - A Leading Cause of Poor Health and Cancers
    Dr Radha Goyal, Deputy Director of Indian Pollution Control Association (IPCA), New Delhi, shares the research on how the carcinogenic elements in the air we breathe are lethal in more senses than one. The current pollution levels in our country, particularly in Delhi/NCR – how threatening is it for lung cancer cases? The latest urban air quality database released by the World Health Organization (WHO) reconfirms that most Indian cities are becoming death traps because of very high air…
  • 10 Warning Signs of Lung Cancer
    On World Lung Cancer Day, consultant respirologist at Mumbai's Hinduja Hospital Dr Lancelot Pinto highlights 10 common symptoms of lung cancer. Lung cancer accounts for about 13 per cent of all new cancers in India, with smoking being by far the leading cause of the disease. Individuals who currently smoke, or have smoked in the past, those who have a family history of lung cancers, and those who have been exposed at work to asbestos are at a particularly high risk for lung cancer, compared to…
  • I Breathe, No More
    Diagnosed with advanced lung cancer, author and neurosurgeon Paul Kalanithi chronicles his illness and death in an emotionally moving book, When Breath Becomes Air, which is currently topping the New York Times bestseller list. Our editor Shivani Maheshwari shares her view: There are not many books that leave you as unsettled as Paul Kalanithi’s When Breath Becomes Air. It gets difficult to hold back the tears at the end, as Kalanithi battles time to chronicle his illness…