MD Anderson Cancer Center: Treatment Options for Lung Cancer

Reporter: Aviva Lev-Ari, PhD, RN

 

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Surgeon David Rice, M.D., is dedicated to providing the most-advanced
personalized lung cancer treatments, including minimally invasive surgeries.

Oncologist George Simon, M.D., FACP, FCCP, examines one of his patients. Dr. Simon specializes in targeted
therapies to improve outcomes for patients with small cell and non-small cell lung cancers.

George Simon, M.D., FACP, FCCP
Section Chief, Translational Research; Professor

If you have been diagnosed with lung cancer, we’re here to help. Call 1-877-632-6789 to make an appointment or request an appointment online.

Lung Cancer Treatment Options

• Basics
• Symptoms
• Diagnosis
• Treatment
• Prevention
• Knowledge Center

Our Treatment Approach

At MD Anderson, some of the nation’s top lung cancer specialists focus their extraordinary expertise on you. We customize your treatment to deliver the most advanced, least invasive treatments available for lung cancer. And because your peace of mind is important to us, we specialize in techniques and therapies than can help preserve lung function.

MD Anderson offers the most advanced lung cancer treatments, many available at only a few locations in the United States. Your lung cancer therapy may include:

• Proton therapy
• Targeted therapies
• Cyberknife® stereotactic radiosurgery
• Gene therapyand use of nanoparticles to deliver chemotherapy
• Minimally invasive operations
• Treatment for lung cancers that elsewhere might be considered inoperable
• Special techniques for treating cancers that invade the spinal column

And we’re constantly researching newer, safer, more-effective lung cancer treatments – with fewer side effects. We are proud to be one of the few cancer centers in the nation to house a prestigious federally funded lung cancer SPORE (Specialized Program of Research Excellence) program. This translates to a wide variety of clinical trials for new treatments.

Our Lung Cancer Treatments

If you are diagnosed with lung cancer, your doctor will discuss the best options to treat it. This depends on several factors, including:

• The stage and type of lung cancer
• Other lung problems, such as emphysema or chronic bronchitis
• Possible side effects of treatment
• Your general health

Your treatment for lung cancer will be customized to your particular needs. It may include one or more of the following therapies to treat the cancer or help relieve symptoms.

If you have been diagnosed with lung cancer, we’re here to help. Call 1-877-632-6789 to make an appointment or request an appointment online.

 

Make Your First Appointment

Why Choose MD Anderson?

• Latest, most-advancedlung cancer treatmentsincluding delivery of chemotherapy by nanoparticles, minimally invasive surgical techniques, targeted therapies and gene therapies
• Leading-edge radiotherapy approaches including proton therapy, intensity-modulated radiotherapy (IMRT) and stereotactic radiotherapy
• Focus on saving lung function and reducing damage to healthy tissue
• Nationally recognized lung cancer research program, range of clinical trials
• Lung cancer is part of MD Anderson’sMoon Shots Program: an ambitious effort to reduce cancer deaths through the rapid discovery of new treatments

Lung Cancer Knowledge Center

• News and Articles
• Videos and Podcasts
• Education Resources

Treatment at MD Anderson

Lung cancer is treated in our:

• Thoracic Centerby our expert team
• Proton Therapy Centerby our expert team

Find Your MD Anderson Location

Surgery

Surgeon David Rice, M.D., is dedicated to providing the most-advanced
personalized lung cancer treatments, including minimally invasive surgeries.

Like all surgeries, lung cancer surgery is most successful when performed by a specialist with a great deal of experience in the particular procedure.

MD Anderson lung surgeons are among the most skilled and recognized in the world. They perform a large number of surgeries for lung cancer each year, using the least invasive and most effective techniques. For some patients, our advanced Cyberknife® stereotactic radiosurgery system provides an effective minimally invasive approach.

Lung cancer may be treated with surgery alone or combined with other treatments. Chemotherapy or radiation may be given:

• Before surgery to shrink tumors. This is called induction or neoadjuvant therapy.
• After surgery to help destroy cancer cells that may remain in the body. This is called adjuvant therapy.

Surgery is used less often for small cell lung cancer because this type of cancer spreads more quickly through the body and is not often found in the early stages when it is confined to the lungs.

The most common types of surgery for lung cancer are:

• Wedge resection: Removal of the tumor and a pie- or wedge-shaped piece of the lung around the tumor
• Lobectomy: Removal of the lobe of the lung with cancer
• Segmentectomy or segmental resection: Removal of a segment, or part, of the lobe where the cancer is located
• Pneumonectomy: Removal of the entire lung
• Sleeve resection: Removal of part of the bronchus

In addition, lymph nodes in the chest will be removed and looked at under a microscope to find out if the lung cancer has spread. This will help doctors decide if you need further treatment after surgery.

Video-assisted thoracic surgery (VATS): MD Anderson surgeons are specially trained and highly skilled at performing this minimally invasive surgery, and they use the latest equipment available.

Other types of surgery

Sometimes surgery is needed to help problems caused by lung cancer or its treatment. This may include:

• Laser surgery to open a blocked airway
• Placement of small tubes (stents) to keep airways open
• Cryosurgery to freeze and destroy cancer tissue
• Placement of a Pleurx-Denver catheter to drain fluid that may accumulate in the pleural cavity (the layer of tissue that surrounds the lungs)
• Cyberknife® stereotactic radiosurgery

Chemotherapy

MD Anderson offers the most up-to-date and effective chemotherapy options for lung cancer. Chemotherapy is often the main treatment for small cell lung cancer or if the cancer has spread (metastasized). MD Anderson offers techniques to help make chemotherapy more effective, including delivery by nanoparticles. If surgery is not an option for you, your doctor may suggest chemotherapy and radiation.

Targeted Therapies

MD Anderson is among just a few cancer centers in the nation that are able to offer you targeted therapies for some types of lung cancer. These innovative new drugs stop the growth of cancer cells by interfering with certain proteins and receptors or blood vessels that supply the tumor with what it needs to grow.

Radiation Therapy

New radiation therapy techniques and remarkable skill allow MD Anderson doctors to target lung cancer more precisely, delivering the maximum amount of radiation with the least damage to healthy cells. Radiation therapy may be used with chemotherapy and/or surgery.

The Thoracic Center provides the very latest radiation treatments for lung cancer, including:

• Brachytherapy: Tiny radioactive seeds are placed in the body close to the tumor
• 3D-conformal radiation therapy: Several radiation beams are given in the exact shape of the tumor
• Intensity-modulated radiotherapy (IMRT): Treatment is tailored to the specific shape of the tumor

Proton Therapy

The Proton Therapy Center at MD Anderson is one of the world’s largest and most advanced centers. It’s the only proton therapy facility in the country located within a comprehensive cancer center. This means this cutting-edge therapy is backed by all the expertise and compassionate care for which MD Anderson is famous.

Proton therapy delivers high radiation doses directly into the tumor, sparing nearby healthy tissue and vital organs. For many patients, this results in better cancer control with fewer side effects.

Photodynamic Therapy (PDT)

In photodynamic therapy, a light-sensitive chemical is injected into the body, where it remains longer in cancer cells than it does in normal cells. The chemical is activated with a laser that initiates the destruction of cancer cells. PDT often is used on very small tumors or to reduce certain symptoms of lung cancer.

Our Lung Cancer Clinical Trials

Because of its status as one of the world’s premier cancer centers, MD Anderson participates in many clinical trials (research studies) for lung cancer. Sometimes they are your best option for treatment. Other times, they help researchers learn how to treat cancer and improve the future of cancer treatment.

To find out more about clinical trials at MD Anderson for lung cancer, visit our Clinical Trials database or speak to your doctor.

Thoracic/Head & Neck Medical Oncology

While encompassing the overall mission of MD Anderson Cancer Center, the particular goals of the Department of Thoracic/Head and Neck Medical Oncology are to provide the highest quality of care to our patients and to advance the treatment and prevention of aerodigestive cancers through innovative clinical and laboratory research.

Our investigations involve many of the most promising molecularly-targeted agents and combinations of agents currently known. We emphasize rigorous study conduct and impeccable study design, and many of our studies have been developed through cooperative group mechanisms.

The Department of Thoracic/Head and Neck Medical Oncology staff directly responsible for patient care is comprised of 21 physicians, 24 research nurses, two inpatient mid-level providers, and 13 outpatient mid-level providers. Our physician team includes ten physicians who care only for thoracic medical oncology patients in the Thoracic Center and eleven medical oncologists who treat both lung cancer and head/neck cancer patients in those respective outpatient clinic areas.

Why Choose MD Anderson?

• Latest, most-advancedlung cancer treatmentsincluding delivery of chemotherapy by nanoparticles, minimally invasive surgical techniques, targeted therapies and gene therapies
• Leading-edge radiotherapy approaches including proton therapy, intensity-modulated radiotherapy (IMRT) and stereotactic radiotherapy
• Focus on saving lung function and reducing damage to healthy tissue
• Nationally recognized lung cancer research program, range of clinical trials
• Lung cancer is part of MD Anderson’sMoon Shots Program: an ambitious effort to reduce cancer deaths through the rapid discovery of new treatments

Faculty & Staff

Ethan Dmitrovsky, M.D.
Provost and Executive Vice President; Professor

Waun Ki Hong, M.D.
Head, Division of Cancer Medicine and Vice Provost; Professor

John V. Heymach, M.D., Ph.D.
Chair, Thoracic/ Head & Neck Medical Oncology and Chief, Thoracic Medical Oncology; Professor

Bonnie S. Glisson, M.D., FACP
Associate Chair, Thoracic/ Head & Neck Medical Oncology; Professor

George R. Blumenschein, Jr., M.D.
Associate Professor

Lauren Byers, M.D.
Assistant Professor

Frank V. Fossella, M.D.
Medical Director, Thoracic Multidisciplinary Care Center; Professor

Don Gibbons, M.D., Ph.D.
Assistant Professor

Kathryn Gold, M.D.
Assistant Professor

Faye M. Johnson, M.D., Ph.D.
Co-Chief, Section of Head & Neck Medical Oncology; Associate Professor

Merrill S. Kies, M.D.
Deputy Division Head for Global Oncology; Professor

Jonathan M. Kurie, M.D.
Professor

Charles Lu, M.D., S.M.
Associate Professor; Associate Medical Director, Head and Neck Center

Erminia Massarelli, M.D., Ph.D.
Assistant Professor

Vassiliki A. Papadimitrakopoulou, M.D.
Professor, Deputy Section Chief Thoracic Medical Oncology

Katherine M. Pisters, M.D.
Professor

Hai T. Tran, Pharm.D.
Associate Professor

George Simon, M.D., FACP, FCCP
Section Chief, Translational Research; Professor

Anne Tsao, M.D.
Director, Mesothelioma Program; Associate Professor

William N. William, Jr., M.D.
Chief, Section of Head & Neck Medical Oncology; Assistant Professor

Related Care Centers

• Head & Neck Center
• Thoracic Center

Related Diseases

• Esophageal cancer
• Lung cancer
• Oral cancer
• Mesothelioma
• Throat cancer

Related Programs

• Lung Cancer Research Program
• Lung Cancer Moonshot