Novelos to the Rescue: The Fight Against Cancer

The fight against lung cancer begins and ends with breakthrough research. Period. One company that is at the forefront of innovating the way we can treat lung cancer is Novelos Therapeutics (www.novelos.com), a Massachusetts-based biotech firm that may very well save tens of thousands of lives. Novelos has a lead product, NOV-002, that looks like the most promising - and safe - means of defeating non-small lung cancer (NSLC). Let me put this news in its most deserved context: NOV-002 is something we need immediately -- for the betterment of science and the preservation of life! I write these words as someone who has lost a dear friend to lung cancer; I write these words as a citizen frustrated by the delays government imposes on scientific discovery and the red tape that undermines progress. Based on my own readings - and I am careful to separate mere speculation from provable facts - NOV-002 could do for NSLC would anti-viral drugs have done for HIV: revolutionize everything, putting patients in a position strength and renewed energy.
This column in Health News Digest makes the same point, that NOV-002 is the real deal, while educating people about the important changes currently underway in the treatment of NSLC. I rarely get into the minutiae of this stuff, but I want people to learn more about this treatment because, based on the numbers, we all have a friend or loved one dealing with NSLC. And we can't afford to wait for this disease to take its course. The fight against NSLC starts now! NOV-002 is in the fight -- we need to defeat this scourge.

http://www.healthnewsdigest.com/news/Cancer_Issues_660/New_Pathways_In_The_Treatment_Of_Non-Small_Cell_Lung_Cancer.shtml

Treatment For Lung Cancer

The internet is a great resource for those interested in lung cancer.

From the Mayo Clini to Sloane-Kettering, there's a ton of information available.

Here's some information from WebMD:

Lung Cancer Surgery
Surgery is the preferred treatment for many people with lung cancer. Learn about the different types of surgery.
Related Guide: Lung Cancer Chemotherapy Medications
A variety of chemotherapy medications are used to treat lung cancer. Learn about them here.
Related Guide: Lung Cancer Radiation Treatment
Radiation therapy is commonly used to treat lung cancer. Learn when it’s used and what the side effects are.
Cancer Pain Medication
Several different types of medications are used to treat cancer pain. See which medication might be right for your pain.
Treatment of Non-Small-Cell Lung Cancer
Learn all about treatment of non-small-cell lung cancer -- from surgery and chemotherapy to photodynamic therapy.
Non-Small-Cell Lung Cancer: Treatment by Stage
Treatment varies for the different stages of non-small-cell lung cancer. Learn more here.
Treatment of Small-Cell Lung Cancer
Learn all about treatment of non-small-cell lung cancer, including surgery, chemotherapy, and radiation.
Small-Cell Lung Cancer: Treatment by Stage
Limited and extensive stages of small-cell lung cancer are treated differently. Learn what to expect.

Treatment Options For Lung Cancer

Treatment options for lung cancer depend on its severity and when it is caught.

Lung cancer is an active area of medical research and new drugs are being tested all the time.

Here's more from the Mayo Clinic:

You and your doctor choose a cancer treatment regimen based on a number of factors, such as your overall health, the type and stage of your cancer, and your preferences. Options typically include one or more treatments, including surgery, chemotherapy, radiation therapy or targeted drug therapy.

In some cases you may choose not to undergo treatment. For instance, you may feel that the side effects of treatment will outweigh the potential benefits. When that's the case, your doctor may suggest comfort care to treat only the symptoms the cancer is causing, such as pain.

Lung Cancer Treatments

Treatment for lung cancer depends on its severity.

The earlier lung cancer is detected, the more successful treatment is likely to be.

The most severe treatments include surgery and chemotherapy.

Ofthen this only slows the inevitable.

Lung cancer tends to be a deadly disease.

Here's more:

Chemotherapy and radiation may lead to a cure in a small number of patients. These therapies result in shrinking of the tumor and are known to prolong life for extended periods in most patients.
Chemotherapy and radiation are very effective at relieving symptoms.
Inoperable NSCLCs are treated with chemotherapy or a combination of chemotherapy and radiation.
If SCLC is in an early stage (confined to the thorax), the standard of care is chemotherapy and radiation therapy given at the same time.
In later stages (spread outside of the thorax), SCLC is treated with chemotherapy and palliative radiation therapy to areas where metastases may be present.
The brain is sometimes treated with radiation even if no tumor is present there. Called prophylactic cranial irradiation (PCI), this therapy may prevent a tumor from forming. PCI is not suitable for all patients, however, and side effects may occur.
Limited SCLC (has not spread outside the chest cavity) has an 80%-90% rate of response to combination chemotherapy and radiation therapy. Remission (no cancer detected by physical examination or x-ray studies) occurs in 50%-60% of cases.

Lung Cancer Symptoms

A lot of people diagnosed with lung cancer have no symptoms.

Other people feel like they have a sore chest. They notice themselves coughing a lot. The cough gets worse. Something feels heavy in their lungs. Some people cough up blood.

Cancer is usually identified easily by a chest x-ray.

Here are some typical symptoms of lung cancer:

Up to one-fourth of all people with lung cancer may have no symptoms when the cancer is diagnosed. These cancers usually are identified incidentally when a chest x-ray is performed for another reason. The majority of people, however, develop symptoms. The symptoms are due to direct effects of the primary tumor, to effects of metastatic tumors in other parts of the body, or to disturbances of hormones, blood, or other systems caused by the cancer.
Symptoms of primary lung cancers include cough, coughing up blood, chest pain, and shortness of breath.
A new cough in a smoker or a former smoker should raise concern for lung cancer.
A cough that does not go away or gets worse over time should be evaluated by a health-care provider.
Coughing up blood (hemoptysis) occurs in a significant number of people who have lung cancer. Any amount of coughed-up blood is cause for concern.
Chest pain is a symptom in about one-fourth of people with lung cancer. The pain is dull, aching, and persistent and may involve other structures surrounding the lung.
Shortness of breath usually results from a blockage to the flow of air in part of the lung, collection of fluid around the lung (pleural effusion), or the spread of tumor throughout the lungs.
Wheezing or hoarseness may signal blockage or inflammation in the lungs that may go along with cancer.
Repeated respiratory infections, such as bronchitis or pneumonia, can be a sign of lung cancer.

Key Links About Lung Cancer

I've been scouring the web for the best links on this topic.

Here's what I've found:

Lung Cancer Overview
Lung Cancer Causes
Lung Cancer Symptoms
When to Seek Medical Care
Exams and Tests
Lung Cancer Treatment
Medical Treatment
Surgery
Next Steps
Follow-up
Prevention
Outlook
Support Groups and Counseling

My Best Friend Died Of Lung Cancer

I started reading Cathy Seipp when I moved to Los Angeles in the Spring of 1994.

She wrote an entertaining column about the Los Angeles Times -- her favorite newspaper! -- in the monthly Buzz magazine.

I exchanged some email with Cathy in the summer of 2001 and we finally met that winter at a party organized by Cathy and her friends Amy Alkon and Emmanuelle Richard. These monthly parties were conducted under the auspices of the Los Angeles Press Club.

I was at another of these parties in the summer of 2002 at The Standard hotel in downtown Los Angeles. I was kicking back with Cathy and Amy and I said to Cathy, "Your hair is different."

It was different. It was a color and style I did not recognize.

She told me later that night that she had lung cancer. That she had been undergoing chemotherapy and all her hair had fallen out. She said she was wearing a wig.

Her hair did grow back.

She had stage four lung cancer.

She had never smoked.

She battled hard for the next five years. She got in all the walking she could. She got in all the chemo she could. She did everything she could.

She finally succumbed in the Spring of 2007.

Here's more about Cathy Seipp and her courage.

My mother died of cancer.

She first had breast cancer before I was born. She had a mastectomy. Then she gave birth to me in May of 1966. A year later, she was diagnosed with bone cancer.

Over the next four years, she shrunk to 60 pounds and finally died.

Diagnosis & Treatment For Lung Cancer

From the Mayo Clinic:

Mayo Clinic provides comprehensive lung cancer screening, evaluation, education and treatment. Patients are cared for by a team of physicians and other health care providers, which assures that the combined knowledge and wisdom of many experienced specialists are available to each patient.

Mayo Clinic has extensive experience in treating lung cancer. Each year, specialists in pulmonary medicine and medical oncology treat more than 1,500 new patients with lung cancer, and surgeons perform more than 1,000 lung cancer surgeries. The National Cancer Institute has designated Mayo Clinic Cancer Center as a comprehensive cancer center in recognition of its superior breadth and depth of capabilities. Patients have access to clinical trials for experimental therapies.

Expert Review

From Cancer.gov:

There are several types of non-small cell lung cancer.

Each type of non-small cell lung cancer has different kinds of cancer cells. The cancer cells of each type grow and spread in different ways. The types of non-small cell lung cancer are named for the kinds of cells found in the cancer and how the cells look under a microscope:

* Squamous cell carcinoma: Cancer that begins in squamous cells, which are thin, flat cells that look like fish scales. This is also called epidermoid carcinoma.
* Large cell carcinoma: Cancer that may begin in several types of large cells.
* Adenocarcinoma: Cancer that begins in the cells that line the alveoli and make substances such as mucus.

Other less common types of non-small cell lung cancer are: pleomorphic, carcinoid tumor, salivary gland carcinoma, and unclassified carcinoma.

Smoking can increase the risk of developing non-small cell lung cancer.

Smoking cigarettes, pipes, or cigars is the most common cause of lung cancer. The earlier in life a person starts smoking, the more often a person smokes, and the more years a person smokes, the greater the risk. If a person has stopped smoking, the risk becomes lower as the years pass.

Anything that increases a person's chance of developing a disease is called a risk factor. Having a risk factor does not mean that you will get cancer; not having risk factors doesn’t mean that you will not get cancer. People who think they may be at risk should discuss this with their doctor. Risk factors for lung cancer include the following:

Lung Cancer Treatment By Stages

From the Oncology Channel:

Stage 1 and Stage 2
Surgical resection of the tumor is the principle form of treatment for patients with Stage 1 or Stage 2 lung cancer. If, during surgery, the resected lung margins are found to be close to or involved with the tumor, the physician may recommend additional treatment in the form of radiotherapy (radiation therapy). Radiotherapy is given to reduce the rate of tumor re-growth in the area of the original tumor.

If a patient is not medically able to withstand tumor resection, radiotherapy alone may be administered to destroy the tumor tissue.

Stage 3
Experts often divide Stage 3 cancer patients into three groups: patients with obvious Stage 3 disease who show abnormal, enlarged lymph nodes on chest x-ray or CT scan; patients with normal-appearing, but cancerous mediastinal lymph nodes that are identified during mediastinoscopy (examination of the chest cavity with an endoscope); and classic Stage 3b patients with tumors of any size and cancerous lymph nodes within the mediastinum and/or the carina (tracheal ridge), hilum ("pit" for entry/exit of vessels within the lungs), upper ribs, or upper collarbone region.

Lung Cancer Treatment

Here are the basics from the Oncology Channel:

Treatment for lung cancer depends upon a variety of factors. The most important factors are the histopathologic (diseased tissue) type of lung cancer and the stage of the cancer.

Once the stage of the lung cancer has been determined, the oncology team and the patient work together to develop a treatment plan. It is important for lung cancer patients to discuss the value of different forms of therapy with their oncologist. Other factors that affect lung cancer treatment include the patient's general health, medical conditions that can affect treatment (such as chemotherapy), and tumor characteristics.

Characteristics of the lung tumor are used to help separate patients into two groups: patients who are at low risk for cancer recurrence and patients who are at high risk for cancer recurrence. Specific prognostic—disease-forecasting—factors are used to place patients in either of these groups. In particular, the histopathologic groupings of small cell lung carcinoma (SCLC) versus non-small cell lung carcinoma (NSCLC) may be used to better predict a patient's prognosis and expected response to therapy.