Diagnosis and Treatment of Lung Cancer
Overview of Clinical Services
The lungs take in oxygen, which cells need to live and carry out their normal functions, and the lungs also get rid of carbon dioxide, a waste product of the body's cells. The lungs are part of the larger respiratory system that makes breathing possible.
A Personalized, Team Approach
At the Stanford Cancer Center we take a multidisciplinary approach to lung cancer and cancers of the pleura through the Thoracic Oncology Program. Physicians from a variety of specialties are involved in patient evaluation, diagnosis, and therapy.
Our treatment team includes faculty physicians from:
- Surgery
- Radiation oncology
- Radiology
- Pathology
- Medical oncology
- Pulmonary medicine
The Multidisciplinary Thoracic Tumor Board meets weekly to evaluate newly diagnosed patients. By having your personalized treatment plan developed by experts from each different field, you can be assured that all possible treatment approaches have been considered, and that the best one for you is put into place.
The Best Technology
At the Cancer Center, our physicians are leaders in their field and have access to the most advanced technologies available to provide for your care. Our programs and expertise can be outlined as follows:
Diagnosis
- Spiral CT screening for lung cancer -- one of the most advanced computer-aided diagnostic systems available -- to assist in screening for abnormalities.
- Expertise in CT-directed biopsy, to ensure that biopsies contain the cells that will yield the most accurate analysis.
- PET (positron emission tomography) imaging -- both investigational and for staging of lung cancer -- to ensure that you receive the most appropriate treatment.
- Fine Needle Aspirate Team -- specialized pathologists skilled in making a diagnosis from a tiny number of cells or tissue -- enabling accurate diagnosis while using less invasive fine-needle aspiration.
Treatment
- Experienced surgeons, particularly for complex cases.
- Radiofrequency ablation, an advanced, minimally invasive procedure that uses a heat-generating, electrode-tipped catheter to destroy tumor cells.
- CyberKnife, an advanced stereotactic radiosurgery device that uses computer technology to deliver radiation therapy with unprecedented precision.
- Photodynamic therapy program with laser for removing obstructing lesions.
- Intraoperative radiotherapy (IORT) that allows doctors to deliver a high dose of radiation to the tumor site while a patient is still in the operating room during surgery. One-time IORT is more convenient than traditional radiotherapy and reduces the exposure of healthy tissues to radiation.
- Intensity modulated radiation (IMRT) that reduces the dose of radiation received by healthy tissue, and can allow doctors to deliver radiation to difficult-to-reach areas.
- Brachytherapy -- the placement of radioactive materials at the tumor site to deliver more targeted radiation therapy and make treatment more convenient.
- Respiratory gated radiation therapy that enables doctors to precisely delivery radiation to the lungs by compensating for the movement that occurs when you breathe.
- Bronchial stenting that opens up airways and makes breathing easier.
Advanced Experimental Therapy
- Hypoxic cell sensitizers (tirapazimine) -- special medications that enhance the power of radiation to kill cancer cells.
- Novel therapies for metastatic disease
- New targeted agents
- New combinations of chemotherapy
- Radiation sensitizing drug therapy plus radiation for treating brain metastases
- Antisense therapy plus chemotherapy
- Modulation of multidrug resistance
- Dendritic cell vaccines
- Autologous tumor cell vaccines
- Multimodality protocol for locally advanced (stage III) lung cancer
A complete list of clinical trials of chemotherapy, radiation, and new surgical techniques for patients with advanced lung disease is available at the clinical trials database.
Genetics
Researchers are starting to uncover genetic differences in people that make them more susceptible tobacco toxins, and may someday help to identify the people who are most at risk.
Stanford researchers were also some of the earliest pioneers in sequencing the human genome and developing methods to more rapidly identify genetic differences between people with different diseases. Today, our doctors continue to lead the field and apply this technology to cancer. For example, researchers at the Medical Center have identified genes that can distinguish between different forms of lung cancer and may be able to predict how a patient will respond to treatment.
Contact information
You can choose to come to the Stanford Cancer Center at any point in your care.
To schedule the following types of appointments:
- New patient appointment: (650) 498-6000
- Medical oncologist or the Comprensive Thoracic Tumor Board appointments: (650) 498-6000
- Thoracic Surgery Clinic: (650) 736-7191
Trial Administration