Role of radiation therapy in lung cancer management - a review

Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer death worldwide. Furthermore, more than 50% of lung cancer patients are found affected by distant metastases at the time of diagnosis. On the other hand, 20% of these patients are without regional spread and are good candidates for surgical operation. The remaining 30% represent an intermediate group whose tumors have metastasized up to regional lymph nodes. These remain 30% are the most appropriate candidates for radiation therapy. These patients are also called as "locally advanced lung cancer" or stage III lung cancer patients. In these patients strategy of combination therapy viz. radiation therapy in combination with chemotherapy is also tried by various groups in the recent past for this better management. However, long-term survival is still poor with a 5-year survival in 5-25% of patients. During the last decades, there has been a development in radiation strategies. The present review article focuses on different approaches to optimize radiotherapy for these patients.