Your Cancer Action: Treatment Options

It is important to learn as much as you can about cancer treatment in order to work with your healthcare team to make the most informed decision possible. So, don’t hesitate to reach out for the information and support you need. It’s important to communicate openly with your healthcare team so that you can find – and follow – the most appropriate treatment options for you.

Questions to ask your doctor

If you’re not entirely comfortable talking about lung cancer with your healthcare provider, there’s a useful guide available. It’s a Doctor Discussion Guide that will help you know the important questions to ask, and it’s part of the support offered in Yes, I Can. Take a moment to enroll, and you’ll get your Discussion Guide, along with e-mail updates, and much more.

Enroll now in Yes, I Can. Click here.

Types of Treatment

There are several treatment options for non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), and more than one may be used. These include surgery, radiation therapy, chemotherapy, or targeted therapy.

As you think about your options, there are several things to consider with your healthcare team: the stage of the cancer, your health, treatment side effects, and the chance of living longer. Age shouldn’t be a barrier: older people, if they’re in generally good health, can benefit as much from treatment, according to the American Cancer Society.

Getting a second medical opinion is often recommended for lung cancer. If you’ve already had tests done with your first doctor, these results can be shared with the second doctor.

Surgery

With early stage lung cancers, if surgery can be performed, it gives the best outlook for curing NSCLC. Operations can include a pneumonectomy, where the whole lung is removed; lobectomy, where part of the lung is removed, and segmentectomy, where part of a lobe is removed. Laser surgery can also be used to ease symptoms. A new type of specialized surgery, called video-assisted thoracic surgery (VATS), uses a tiny camera to see and then remove the tumor.

Radiation

Radiation uses high-energy rays (like x-rays) to kill or shrink cancer cells. The most frequently used method for treating lung cancer is external (outside the body) radiation. Another type of radiation is internal radiation, called brachytherapy, which has radioactive material placed inside or close to the tumor.

Radiation is sometimes used for people who aren’t healthy enough for surgery. In other people, radiation may be a post-surgery treatment to kill cancer that can’t be seen during surgery. New ways of giving radiation treatment are allowing doctors to treat lung cancers more accurately, while reducing the radiation exposure of nearby healthy tissue.

Palliative radiation therapy is when radiation is given to help reduce the symptoms (such as pain) from cancer that has spread to other parts of the body.

Chemotherapy

If your healthcare provider has suggested chemotherapy, you should feel assured that this treatment decision is based on medical science and what is right for your individual situation.

Chemotherapy puts cancer-killing drugs into your bloodstream. Chemo can be given in many ways:

• Intravenous (IV). The chemotherapy goes directly into a vein.
• Injection. Chemotherapy is given by a shot in a muscle in your arm, thigh, or hip or right under the skin in the fatty part of your arm, leg, or belly.
• Intra-arterial (IA). Chemotherapy goes directly into the artery that is feeding the cancer.
• Intraperitoneal (IP). The chemotherapy goes directly into the peritoneal cavity (the area that contains organs such as your intestines, stomach, liver, and ovaries).
• Topically. The chemotherapy comes in a cream that you rub onto your skin.
• Orally. The chemotherapy comes in pills, capsules, or liquids that you swallow.

Because these drugs move throughout the body, they can treat cancers that have spread to other organs.

Treatment schedules for chemotherapy vary. How often and how long you receive chemotherapy depends on:

• Your type of cancer and how advanced it is
• The goals of treatment (whether chemotherapy is used to cure your cancer, control its growth, or ease the symptoms)
• The type of chemotherapy
• How your body reacts to chemotherapy

Chemotherapy is often given in cycles. A cycle is a period of chemotherapy treatment, which is followed by a period of rest. You might receive 1 week of chemotherapy followed by 3 weeks of rest. These combined 4 weeks make up one chemotherapy cycle. During the rest period, your body has the chance to build new healthy cells

Side effects: facts and reassurance

Because chemo drugs kill cancer cells, they also affect some normal cells. This can lead to side effects. Some of the common side effects with chemotherapy for lung cancer are: hair loss, mouth sores, loss of appetite, nausea, increased chance of infection, increased tendency to bruise or bleed, and fatigue (due to low red blood cell count).

"Will I have side effects?" "What will they be like?" Most people ask these questions before starting chemo. Here are some reassuring things to keep in mind:

• Not everyone gets every single side effect.
• Different people experience different intensities of side effects. Ask your healthcare team which side effects are likely with your chemo, how long they may last, and what to do about them.
• Your doctor may prescribe medicines to help prevent some side effects from occuring.
• For many people chemo side effects are a short-term issue, not a long-term problem. Remember: you have to weigh the potential side effects of chemo against its power to treat cancer.

Find out more

To find out more about side effects, including a detailed side effect library of information and other cancer topics affecting your life, Enroll now in Yes, I Can. Click here.

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