Page 24 - Inspire Magazine 2019
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In recent issues of Inspire,
we’ve covered aspects of the
exciting new developments
in medicines and drugs to help
lung cancer patients, including
targeted therapies and
immunotherapies.
Now it’s time to turn the
spotlight on radiotherapy:
Advances in this type of treatment mean that many adjuvant radiotherapy.
patients with lung cancer who previously could not
have been treated can now expect to receive radical, Another type of radiotherapy - known as
even curative, treatment. prophylactic cranial irradiation (PCI) - is sometimes
used during the treatment of small cell lung cancer.
This involves treating the whole brain with a low
Radiotherapy uses pulses of radiation to destroy dose of radiation to reduce the chances of lung
cancer cells and can be delivered in different cancer cells spreading to the brain.
ways depending on whether it is being given to
reduce and potentially cure the lung cancer (this Patients with small cell lung cancer might receive
is called radical radiotherapy) or to reduce side radiotherapy with chemotherapy if their cancer is
effects and improve quality of life (known as only in one side of the lung. This treatment, called
palliative care). concurrent chemoradiotherapy, can also be used to
try to cure stage 2-3 non small cell lung cancer not
In addition, it can be given to help prevent the cancer suitable for surgery.
from spreading.
Radical radiotherapy is now delivered in several
Where radiotherapy is used after surgery to reduce ways. New treatments are being developed to offer
the chances of the cancer recurring, it is called more radiotherapy to the tumour and reduce the
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