Lung Cancer Insight
Helping you find a cure
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A cure for lung cancer may not exist yet, but there are many treatment options available. Among your options are surgery, chemotherapy, radiation therapy, and biological therapy. The best choice for you will depend on the type of lung cancer you have, the stage your cancer is at, and on your general state of health.
In June 2009, Dr. Per Grinsted stated, "Surgery can cure lung cancer, but only one in five patients are suitable for this treatment." Another post from a Heart and Lung Center cites, "Most lung cancer removal is achieved through surgery."
Once tumor is successfully removed, the patient may experience recurrence. If so, He is considered to be cured if the cancer does not return within five years. Only about 10% of all patients with non-small cell lung cancer will be "cured".
Surgical resection is cutting away the tumor. There are several types of surgery that may be performed. They are:
The anterior limited thoractomy is less invasive and results in less blood loss, drainage and postoperative pain than a standard thoracotomy. The incisions in video-assisted thoracoscopy are even smaller.
Lobectomy (removal of a lobe) is the most common type of lung cancer surgery. The right lung has three lobes, and the left lung has two lobes.
A pneumonectomy is the total removal of one of the lungs. A wedge resection is the removal of a small section of one of the lobes of the lung.
A Possible Cure for Lung Cancer could be in the near future
Chemotherapy can help you to survive your cancer. Chemotherapy means using anti-cancer or “cytotoxic†drugs to destroy cancer cells. These drugs circulate in your bloodstream and reach the cancer cells wherever they are. There are two kinds of lung cancer:
There are different drugs used depending on the type of cancer you have. Elsewhere on this website, chemotherapy drugs are explained in full detail along with common side effects you may experience.Some standard therapies are listed here for your information.
Gemcitabine hydrochloride is a chemotherapy drug that is effective against many of these (NSCLC) tumors. A combination therapy of gemcitabine, cisplatin, and vinorelbine is safe and very useful if you have advanced NSCLC.
Another option to consider with advanced non-small cell lung cancer is an alternating schedule of chemotherapy and radiation therapy. The chemotherapy is with etoposide and cisplatin followed by 60 Gray (unit or measure of x-rays) chest radiation therapy.
These combination therapies are often used: Etoposide and cisplatin in combination chemotherapy plus 4,000 - 4,500 cGy chest radiation
Etoposide, cisplatin, and vincristine sulfate in combination chemotherapy plus the same amount of chest radiation
Surgical resection followed by combination chemotherapy and radiation therapy
These combination therapies are often used: phosphamide, doxorubicin, and etoposide combination chemotherapy
Cyclophosphamide, doxorubicin, and vincristine combination chemotherapy
Etoposide, cisplatin or carboplatin in combination chemotherapy
Ifosfamide, carboplatin, and etoposide in combination chemotherapy
There are other less common combinations of chemotherapeutic agents. You may be prescribed a newer drug that is available through a clinical trial. Although chemotherapy and radiation are not foolproof cures for lung cancer, they can alleviate your symptoms and extend your life.
In October 2006, The New England Journal of Medicine reported that a powerful scanner, the spiral CT, can detect very small and early stage lung cancers. This method of early detection may open the door to the "cure for lung cancer" that doctors are looking for. That is because early detection has always been most important for all cancers, the key to curing lung cancer. The data was collected as part of an International Early Lung Cancer Actions Program (I-ELCAP). This is also described in detail elsewhere on this very website.
Lung Cancer Research - A description of lung cancer research and the research process.
New Lung Cancer Drugs - New lung cancer drug treatments can save your life. Over the past few years new lung cancer drugs have entered the market.
Medical Research News - How to find reliable medical research news pertinent to anticancer drug approval and clinical research. A reference is given for access to clinical study information.
Clinical Cancer Research - Clinical cancer research can get you into cutting edge medical treatment.
Cancer Therapy and Research Center - Cancer therapy and research center medical work is conducted at national medical centers around the world.
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"This website is for all lung cancer patients, their families and friends. I want people to know that they can overcome this disease by learning what to do, where to go for great medical help, how to deal with insurance and all the other problems facing them.
I have worked with some great people to make this web site easy to understand and devoted to helping you. Please let me know if anything doesn't help you or if we can do something more that would be useful to you.
The most important factor in a person getting healthy is their personal determination and their will to be better. You have to summon that determination and then take the steps described here - we are here to help and support you."
HERE ARE SOME LINKS TO OTHER WEBSITES YOU MAY FIND INTERESTING: