Lung cancer still the deadliest type of cancer
MANILA, Philippines - Lung cancer remains the deadliest type of cancer globally accounting for 1.18 million people dying each year or two deaths per minute. The survival rates for lung cancer are also very poor at only 15 percent compared to breast cancer survival which is at around 89 percent.
“In the Philippines, statistics point out that despite the increase of breast cancer incidence, lung cancer kills 80 percent of those diagnosed with the disease compared to 35-percent mortality among breast cancer patients,” shares Dr. Claire Soliman, head, Breast Section of the Department of Medical Oncology, St. Luke’s Medical Center.
In line with the celebration of Global Lung Cancer Awareness Month in November, the Philippine Society of Medical Oncology (PSMO), in cooperation with the C-Network and Roche Philippines, embarked on an awareness campaign with journalists to convey the much-needed steps to elevate awareness on the disease and expound on the new developments in screenings and therapies for the disease.
Despite alarming statistics, lung cancer is not as highlighted in mass media, as much as other cancer types. Lung cancer may be asymptomatic in most cases, resulting in the majority of cases being diagnosed at an advanced and sometimes incurable stage. However, despite symptoms being non-specific, there are new diagnostics that a doctor may perform that could make it possible to have an early diagnosis of the disease.
There are two main types of lung cancer: small cell lung cancer (SCLC) and non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). SCLC is a highly aggressive form of lung cancer which is predominantly caused by smoking. Accounting for around 15 percent of all diagnosed cases, the disease spreads to other organs (metastasis) early in the disease process. NSCLC, on the other hand, is the most common form of lung cancer, afflicting around 85 percent of all diagnosed cases with various causes, including smoking. Early stage NSCLC does not always have specific symptoms resulting in diagnosis at advanced stage when the chances for cure or significant patient benefit have already become limited.
“Differentiating histologic cell types of lung cancer is important as they have different kinds of treatment. Currently, there is a variety of cell and tissue analysis to accurately identify cell types,” says Dr. Dennis Tudtud, president of PSMO.
X-rays, CT scan, MRI and bone scan, PET scans, and blood chemistry tests are used to stage lung cancer. There are also bronchoscopy and needle biopsy with CT scan,” says Dr. Tudtud.
“Targeted therapies may address late stages of lung cancer. In a clinical study presented at the 35th Congress of the European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO) in Milan, Italy last October 2010, patients with advanced lung cancer whose tumors carry EGFR activating mutations, first-line treatment with erlotinib nearly tripled progression-free survival compared to a standard chemotherapy combination,” he notes.
