100 Questions & Answers About Lung Cancer, Second Edition

Title......Page 2
Copyright......Page 3
Contents......Page 6
Foreword......Page 10
Introduction......Page 12
Part One: The Basics......Page 16
1. What is cancer?......Page 17
2. What should I know about cancer cells?......Page 18
3. How do normal lungs function?......Page 20
4. Are there different types of lung cancer?......Page 21
6. Who gets lung cancer? Is it common? Are the demographics changing?......Page 23
Part Two: Diagnosis and Staging......Page 26
7. What are the most common symptoms of lung cancer?......Page 27
9. How is lung cancer diagnosed?......Page 29
10. Which tests are performed to diagnose lung cancer?......Page 30
11. How will I learn about the results of my biopsy? What information will be in the pathology report, and what will it mean for me?......Page 32
12. What are lymph nodes?......Page 34
13. What is staging, and why is it important?......Page 35
15. What are the staging guidelines for small cell lung cancer (SCLC)?......Page 36
16. What are the common metastatic sites for lung cancer?......Page 37
17. Which tests and procedures are used to detect whether my lung cancer has spread beyond my chest?......Page 38
Part Three: I’ve Just Been Diagnosed with Lung Cancer—Now What?......Page 40
18. Who treats lung cancer? What is multidisciplinary care?......Page 41
19. How do I find the best doctors to treat my lung cancer? Does the hospital make any difference in my care?......Page 43
20. Should I get a second opinion?......Page 48
22. How can I relate best to my doctor? What can I do to make my medical visits as productive as possible?......Page 51
Part Four: Coping with Your Diagnosis......Page 56
23. What is my prognosis? Can I survive lung cancer?......Page 57
24. How do I manage my emotions? Should I seek professional counseling? What types of psychosocial support are available to me?......Page 58
25. How do I regain control of my life after my lung cancer diagnosis? How do I get past the emotional impact and move forward?......Page 61
26. How do I cope with the stigma of having a “self-inflicted” disease? Should I feel guilty about my smoking? What if I never smoked—how do I cope with having a “smoker’s disease?”......Page 63
27. What should I tell my children about my lung cancer? What if my children are grown?......Page 65
28. What do caregivers need to know to best support a person with lung cancer?......Page 68
29. What insurance and financial concerns do I need to address following a lung cancer diagnosis?......Page 70
30. How do I learn to manage the medical paperwork? What are medical records, and what should I know about them?......Page 73
Part Five: What Types of Treatments Are Available for Lung Cancer?......Page 76
31. What types of treatments are available for lung cancer?......Page 77
32. What are the goals of treatment?......Page 78
33. What is performance status, and why is it important?......Page 79
34. What is surgery for lung cancer? How is it performed?......Page 80
35. What determines whether I am able to have surgery?......Page 82
36. What can I expect before surgery and what can I do to prepare for it?......Page 83
37. What does my surgeon mean when he or she says they “got it all”? Does this mean I am cured?......Page 84
38. What should I expect following my surgery? What are the common complications of lung surgery?......Page 85
39. What is chemotherapy? How does it work?......Page 88
40. What can I expect during chemotherapy?......Page 89
41. What is a CVC or central line? What is a port? How do I know if I need one?......Page 91
43. What are the common side effects of chemotherapy? (see also Part 7)......Page 94
44. What is “targeted therapy”?......Page 96
45. What are common side effects of targeted therapies?......Page 99
47. How does radiation work?......Page 100
48. What is a “dose” of radiation? How many treatments will I need?......Page 101
50. What can I expect during radiation therapy?......Page 102
51. What is the actual procedure like?......Page 104
53. Are there advances in radiation therapy that I should know about?......Page 105
54. What are the common side effects of radiation therapy?......Page 106
55. What is combined modality therapy for lung cancer? What are the advantages and disadvantages of this approach?......Page 109
Part Six: How will my doctor decide which treatment is best for me?......Page 112
56. What are the standard treatment options for my stage NSCLC?......Page 113
57. What are the standard treatment options for my stage SCLC?......Page 120
58. I have SCLC and my doctor has recommended prophylactic cranial irradiation (PCI). What is PCI, and how do I decide whether it is right for me?......Page 122
59. What are clinical trials?......Page 123
60. How do I learn about clinical trials? How do I evaluate whether a trial is the right one for me?......Page 126
61. What is alternative medicine?......Page 128
62. I am 78 years old. Am I too old for chemo? Will it be too tough on me? Are there particular considerations for treatment of elderly lung cancer patients?......Page 131
63. Are there specific treatments available for bronchioloalveolar carcinoma (BAC)?......Page 133
64. My doctor told me that I have developed brain metastases. What are my treatment options?......Page 134
66. How do I decide on a treatment plan when I am faced with multiple options?......Page 135
67. How do I know if my treatment is working? What is the difference between partial response and complete response? What is a remission?......Page 136
69. What happens if my disease recurs? How is recurrence treated? Is it possible to survive a recurrence of lung cancer?......Page 137
Part Seven: Side Effects of Chemotherapy......Page 142
70. What are the common side effects of chemotherapy?......Page 143
71. What are blood counts, and what should I know about them?......Page 144
72. Why am I always exhausted? What can I do for fatigue? Will the fatigue go away after my treatment is over?......Page 148
73. I have heard stories from patients who underwent chemotherapy years ago and had terrible nausea and vomiting. Will I have a similar experience?......Page 149
74. Will I lose my hair during chemotherapy or radiation? What can I do to make the experience more tolerable?......Page 150
76. What can I do about the rash I got with drugs like Tarceva or Erbitux?......Page 154
77. Will treatment for lung cancer make me infertile? Will it affect my sex life?......Page 155
79. Are there long-term, permanent side effects from treatment?......Page 157
Part Eight: Coping with Symptoms of Lung Cancer......Page 160
80. Can my shortness of breath be controlled?......Page 161
81. Could I be depressed?......Page 162
82. What can I do to relieve my pain?......Page 163
83. Am I at risk for a blood clot? What is a pulmonary embolism?......Page 169
84. What are pleural or pericardial effusions and how are they managed?......Page 170
85. Is my cough something I should worry about?......Page 174
Part Nine: Living with Lung Cancer......Page 176
86. How should I change my diet following a lung cancer diagnosis? Should I take dietary supplements? Can diet affect my survival from lung cancer?......Page 177
87. If I smoke, is there any reason to quit? How can I quit smoking while dealing with the stress of lung cancer?......Page 178
88. Should I be exercising?......Page 180
89. What should I know about stress and the immune system? How does stress affect my survival and my ability to cope with my disease? Can complementary therapies help to reduce my stress?......Page 181
90. What about returning to work? I am worried about being able to function at 100 percent. What are my rights?......Page 183
91. What happens when my treatment ends? Why don’t I feel happy—or at least relieved?......Page 184
92. What about follow-up care? How often should I be seen? What is my doctor looking for?......Page 186
93. Should I get a flu shot? What about the pneumonia vaccine?......Page 187
Part Ten: If Treatment Fails......Page 190
95. What is hospice?......Page 191
96. What can I do to prepare for my death?......Page 193
97. What are advance directives?......Page 195
Part Eleven: Prevention, Screening, and Advocacy......Page 200
98. Can lung cancer be prevented? What is chemoprevention?......Page 201
99. Is there a screening test for lung cancer? Does lung cancer run in families? Is my family at increased risk for lung cancer because I have lung cancer?......Page 202
100. Why has there been so little progress in fighting lung cancer? What can I do to help?......Page 206
Appendix: Where Can I Find More Information?......Page 210
Glossary......Page 232
Index......Page 242