Advances in lung cancer?

Selikoff was among the first to emphasize the etiologic role of cigarette smoking and asbestos exposure in lung cancer. Recent reports suggest that aggressive chemotherapy and radiotherapy combined with surgery have improved the prognosis in lung cancer. The outcome of 100 patients with non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) seen in 1979-1980 was compared with the outcome of 100 patients seen in 1989-1990. The two groups consisted of consecutive patients with proven NSCLC who were referred to a pulmonary consultant. In 28 of the earlier patients and 38 of the later group the cancers were completely resectable. Only 12 of the 1979-1980 group have been cured of their cancer, while 25 of the 1989-1990 are free of cancer during the less than 2-year follow-up period. It can be assumed that this number will diminish with time. Current treatment of NSCLC with surgical resection, chemotherapy, and radiotherapy has done little to improve the prognosis of lung cancer in the past 10 years. As stressed by Selikoff, the best available current method for control of lung cancer is prevention.