Guide To Effective Lung Cancer Diagnosis And Treatment

Surgical Options

An individual with lung cancer has numerous surgical options for treatment. The type of surgery used to treat lung cancer depends on several factors, including the size and exact location of the tumor. The surgical option used for smaller localized areas of cancer within the patient's lung is a wedge resection. This surgery is where the cancerous tissue and a small margin of healthy lung tissue around it are removed. When the cancerous tissue is larger than what can be treated with a wedge resection, a segmental resection is performed. A segmental resection involves removing a larger portion of lung tissue that contains the malignant tumor.

When the cancerous tissue infiltrates most of one of the five lobes of the lung, a lobectomy is used. This procedure involves the removal of an entire lobe of the lung. When very little tissue of the lung can be spared due to full cancer infiltration of most of the lobes of the lung, doctors will perform a pneumonectomy. This procedure is one in which an entire lung is removed.

Immunotherapy

Immunotherapy is a treatment method that uses the immune system's unique characteristics to detect and fight off malignant cells. This therapy is possible because the immune system is such a complex mechanism with endless adaptive abilities. Checkpoint inhibitors work by stopping cancerous tumors from disabling the checks and balances the mechanism that causes the inappropriate deactivation of the immune system in cancer patients.

Monoclonal antibodies, another form of immunotherapy, work with the use of artificial antibodies specifically manipulated to target cancerous cells. They are manipulated to act similar to the way natural antibodies in the immune system do. Adoptive cell therapy is a type of immunotherapy involving the removal of immune T cells from the body so they can be altered and manipulated in the laboratory before being placed back into the body to fight off cancer cells.