Is small cell lung cancer easy to cure?

Is small cell lung cancer easy to cure? Many people are very concerned about this issue, because if this disease is not treated, it will cause serious harm and may even be life-threatening, but they don’t know how to cure it thoroughly. Let’s learn about small cell lung cancer. Is it easy to cure?

It is generally believed that small cell lung cancer originates from Kulchitsky cells (argentophilic cells) in the bronchial mucosa or glandular epithelium and belongs to APUD (amine precursor uptake decarboxylation) tumors. Some people also believe that it originates from stem cells in the bronchial mucosal epithelium that can differentiate into neuroendocrine. Small cell lung cancer is the least differentiated and most malignant type of lung cancer. It often occurs in the central part of the lung, grows rapidly, and metastasizes early. Under the light microscope, the cancer cells are small and short spindle-shaped or lymphocyte-like, with little cytoplasm and a naked nucleus. It can still be cured in the early stages of the disease.

Surgery

Patients with TNM stage T1-2N0M0 confirmed by mediastinoscopy or surgical staging can undergo surgical resection. Even patients who achieve complete resection still need chemotherapy after surgery.

Drug treatment

Before 2000, several phase III clinical studies conducted in patients with extensive-stage SCLC confirmed the advantages of EP regimen, CAV regimen, etc. in prolonging survival compared with single drugs. Currently, the recommended first-line chemotherapy regimen is mainly combined chemotherapy, as follows:

EP regimen: etoposide combined with cisplatin.

CAV regimen: cyclophosphamide (CTX) + doxorubicin (ADM) + vincristine (VCR)1.

Irinotecan combined with cisplatin.

After the first-line treatment, topotecan, taxanes, and amrubicin can be considered.

Radiation therapy

It can be divided into radical treatment and palliative treatment, with a dose of 60-70Gy/2Gy/f.