Death rate for lung cancer exceeds all types of cancer combined

Lung cancer remains the deadliest type of cancer globally accounting for more deaths than the combined mortality rate for other types of cancer, including breast, colon, kidney, liver, skin and prostate. Each year, 1.18 million people die as a result of the disease, equating to more than 3,000 deaths worldwide everyday or two deaths per minute.

Five-year survival rates for lung cancer are also very poor at only 15 percent compared to breast cancer survival which is at around 89%.

Here in the Philippines, GLOBOCAN statistics point out that despite the increase of breast cancer incidence, lung cancer kills 80% of those diagnosed (8,518 or 14.2% mortality among 10,643 or 17.4% incidence) of all those diagnosed with the disease compared to 35% mortality among breast cancer patients (4,085 or 11.9% mortality among 11,524 or 31.9% incidence).

In line with the Global Lung Cancer Awareness Month last November, the Philippine Society of Medical Oncology, in cooperation with the C-Network and Roche Philippines embarked on an awareness campaign with medical and lay journalists to convey the much-needed steps to elevate awareness on the disease and expound on the new developments in screenings and therapies for the disease.

Despite these alarming statistics, lung cancer is not as highlighted in mass media, as much as other cancer types. A study in the US indicated that of 600 randomly selected cancer stories that appeared over the course of a year, 61% reported on breast cancer; 23% on prostate cancer; 17% on colorectal cancer; and only 9% focused on lung cancer outside of tobacco and smoking issues.

Lung cancer may be asymptomatic in most cases, resulting in the majority of cases being diagnosed at an advanced and sometimes incurable stage. However, despite symptoms being non-specific, there are new diagnostics that a doctor may perform that could make it possible to have an early diagnosis of the disease.

“Early diagnosis and treatment requires timely presentation to the doctor. In order to achieve this, awareness needs to be raised significantly through government and healthcare professionals to alert people at risk of developing non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Increased coverage in media can help to create awareness and improve the situation,” stressed Dr. Dennis Ramon Tudtud, PSMO president.

Lung cancer treatment may be individualized. Molecular markers, particularly in non-small cell lung cancer are increasingly used to tailor or personalize treatment and these are among the new advances that show promise in prolonging progression-free and overall survival even among those with advanced disease,” explained Dr. Tudtud.

“Targeted therapies may address late stages of lung cancer. In a clinical study presented at the 35th Congress of the European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO) in Milan, Italy last October, patients with advanced lung cancer whose tumors carry EGFR activating mutations, first-line treatment with erlotinib nearly tripled progression-free survival compared to a standard chemotherapy combination,” Dr.Tudtud said.

The study reported that the median progression-free survival among patients under erlotinib was 13.1 months compared to 4.6 months for those who only received chemotherapy. The results were taken from the first prospective Phase III study of the OPTIMAL trial, which included 165 patients whose lung cancer carried mutations activating the Epithelial Growth Factor Receptor (EGFR). Participants in this clinical trial have not received systemic treatment for their cancer.

Another important finding presented during the ESMO Congress is the role of a cancer-associated molecule called MET, an important switch in cancer cells. When turned on, it influences the growth of these cells, and more importantly, MET activation has also been implicated in the resistance of lung cancers to EGFR inhibitors such as erlotinib. Results of the double-blind Phase II trial show that a subset of lung cancer patients seem to live longer and experience delays in disease progression when a new drug that targets a cancer-associated molecule called MET is added to the treatment with erlotinib, a targeted cancer therapy.

The study included 128 patients with advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). At the end of the trial the researchers found that among the 51% of patients whose tumors expressed MET, those who received MetMab (monoclonal antibody) plus erlotinib had better overall survival and longer progression-free survival than those who received erlotinib plus placebo.

“Cancer is something that everyone wants to prevent and in lung cancer, aggressive non-smoking campaigns need everyone’s support. Awareness is really important, taking heed of the alarming mortality rate of lung cancer here in the Philippines as well as globally. We believe that talking about it, making sure that everyone is armed with more and more information, is a big step in empowering everyone to take a hand in lowering both the incidence and number of deaths,” Dr. Tudtud said.–Daily Tribune