Patna AIIMS recently claimed using a novel treatment technique while treating and operating upon two cancer patients. The doctors said the technique had not been performed in any government hospital so far.
AIIMS Patna successfully operated two patients suffering from lung cancer with the help of the new technique. After the surgery was performed successfully, AIIMS doctors claimed that this technique has not been used by any other government-run hospital in the country yet. The hospital management informed that the 60-year-old woman and the 25-year-old man were successfully treated with the help of this surgery.
Before we proceed with knowing how the patients were treated, let us know what lung cancer is and what are the risk factors. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) states that cancer is a disease in which cells in the body grow out of control. Lung cancer begins in the lungs and may spread to lymph nodes or other organs in the body, such as the brain. Cancer from other organs also may spread to lungs.
Furthermore, lung cancers usually are grouped into two main types called small cell and non-small cell (including adenocarcinoma and squamous cell carcinoma). These types of lung cancer grow differently and are treated differently. Non-small cell lung cancer is more common than small cell lung cancer.
How is it treated?
According to the CDC, lung cancer is treated in several ways, depending on the type of lung cancer and how far it has spread. People with non-small cell lung cancer can be treated with surgery, chemotherapy, radiation therapy, targeted therapy, or a combination of these treatments. People with small cell lung cancer are usually treated with radiation therapy and chemotherapy.
Doctors say that lung cancer is often diagnosed at a very late stage and by that time, the condition is already worsened. Cancer would spread throughout the region, further posing challenges for the treatment.
Patna AIIMS' novel technique
With the technique used by doctors at Patna AIIMS, it will become easy to save more lives. Digging into the details of the surgery performed on two patients, as per the doctors, cancer had spread in a larger region in both the patients and they were doubtful whether they could save them. The doctors then decided to perform Hyperthermic intrathoracic chemotherapy (HITHOC) treatment. In this treatment, the chemotherapy drugs are directly delivered to the chest cavity during the surgery, in order to completely destroy the cancer cells. First, the visible cancer growth is removed through surgery, following which the Chemotherapy drugs are used in the HITHOC treatment to kill the remnant cancer cells.
How to prevent lung cancer?
- Quit smoking: Everyone is well aware of the fact that smoking damages the lungs and causes cancer. Even secondhand smoke or passive smoking can also affect the lungs to a great extent. Therefore, as it is always stressed, quit smoking and if any of your friends or family members do so, encourage them to quit too.
- Avoid exposure to cancer-causing agents: Avoid or try to limit the exposure to known cancer-causing agents at the workplace, such as chemicals or tobacco.
- Have a healthy diet: Besides a healthy lifestyle, it is important to have healthy dietary habits, which include consuming lots of fresh and seasonal fruits and vegetables.
Also read: Low-meat, meat-free diets associated with lower cancer risk: Study
