- Surgery to remove the part of the lung that contains cancer
- Chemotherapy — medicine that kills cancer cells throughout the body
- Radiation therapy — high-energy rays that destroy cancer cells
- Targeted therapies — medicines like EGFR and ALK inhibitors that block proteins that help cancer cells grow
- Immunotherapy — medicines like immune checkpoint inhibitors that help the immune system fight off cancer
Surgery to remove the lobe of the lung containing cancer (lobectomy) may offer the greatest likelihood of curing early stage cancers. But there’s still a chance that the tumor could return in the future, says Herbst.
Late-stage cancers are harder to cure, but treatments like immunotherapy and targeted therapy can relieve symptoms and help you feel better.
Deaths from lung cancer, especially NSCLC, have declined over the last few decades, thanks to new treatments and improved screening. Now patients are receiving immunotherapies and targeted therapies for molecular changes like EGFR and ALK as first-line treatments. This may be why the survival rate has improved by 26 percent in the last five years. Biomarker testing helps determine which treatment options will be most effective for a particular patient.
Doctors are learning how to target patients’ cancers more effectively. “We’re learning how to understand why patients are resistant — those who don’t respond to begin with, or those who become resistant during treatment. And in those cases, we are developing new therapies,” says Herbst.
For some, joining a clinical treatment trial may be an option worth considering. “I would encourage patients to seek clinical trials and look for immunotherapy or other approaches,” says Herbst. “We are making great progress, and it’s been very exciting in the last few years.”
Read the full article here
