Lung Cancer Treatment, Surgery, Post-Op Testing

How Will My Doctor Treat Me?

Treatment decisions are made after all medical information has been obtained.

The sort of information that is evaluated includes the patient’s age, previous medical history, breathing and exercise test results, magnetic resonance imaging (MRIs), PET and CAT scans.MRIs, PET and CAT scans are all imaging techniques.

Usually a surgical approach will be considered first. If the patient cannot tolerate surgery, the tumor is unresectable or the cancer has spread outside the lung, then other treatments such as radiation therapy or chemotherapy are considered. Patients may be required to see a cardiologist before final decisions for surgical intervention are made.

What Post Operative Tests are Needed?

Most cures of lung cancer are achieved with surgery. After successful resection of the tumor has been performed and the patient has had no recurrence of tumor over a period of five years, then this is usually accepted as a cure.However, it is still possible for another primary lung cancer to develop which can happen especially if the patient does not stop smoking. Some cures can be achieved with radiation therapy. Chemotherapy occasionally leads to a cure.

How is Lung Cancer Treated?

Surgery remains the best treatment for people who can undergo resection of the cancer. Prompt evaluation and diagnosis is encouraged for individuals with abnormal symptoms. Other types of treatment include chemotherapy which involves receiving medication into the blood stream that attacks the cancer cells in all parts of the body. Another treatment uses radiation therapy to kill the tumor cells. Tumors can be precisely targeted with radiation.

What Makes Surgery a Success?

Careful selection of the patient is the secret to surgical success. A comprehensive assessment may include evaluating the age, nutritional status, breathing capacity, exercise ability and other diseases such as cardiac disease as well as determining the stage of the cancer. Staging is based on the size and position of the tumor, whether there is involvement of the local lymph glands or evidence of spread to other organs before surgery. This can be determined from imaging techniques such as chest x-rays, CAT scans, MRI, etc. The earlier the cancer is detected and treated the better the chances of cure. Once the patient becomes symptomatic the chances of cure decline. The success of surgery is determined by the stage of the lung cancer. Sometimes at surgery the tumor is found to have spread to the local lymph glands when this was not suspected prior to surgery. Technical aspects may be important. Depending on whether the tumor is growing into vital structures, it may or may not be possible to remove all the tumor at the time of surgery. Also, at times it may be necessary to remove portions of the chest wall in order to resect all of the tumor.