01/ What are the risk factors for lung cancer?

Aside from smoking, tobacco use or secondhand smoke, other risk factors for lung cancer include:

• Personal or family history of lung cancer
  
• Exposure to other cancer-causing agents such as radon, arsenic, air pollution or asbestos
  
• Certain dietary supplements such as beta carotene
  

02/ Can lung cancer be detected early?

Symptoms of lung cancer usually don’t appear until the disease is already at an advanced, noncurable stage, which makes early detection difficult. However, our Lung Cancer treatment Center uses computed tomography (CT) scans to identify potential lung cancer as early as possible in current or former smokers.

03/ What tests are needed to stage lung cancer?

In order to determine the best and most effective treatment options, your doctor must first determine which stage your lung cancer is in. To do so, your doctor may administer staging tests, such as computerized tomography (CT) scans, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), positron emission tomography (PET) and bone scans, each of which allows your doctor to determine the location and extent to which your lung cancer may have spread.

04/ Can lung cancer be detected in blood tests?

Although there currently are not any blood tests available that can detect lung cancer with certainty, we have participated in tumor sampling research to assist in the development of future lab tests and better understand how to distinguish between malignant and benign tumors to determine overall risk factors.

05/ Can lung cancer be cured?

Although lung cancer can technically be cured, it is very rare and can only occur in very specific circumstances, such as individuals who have stage 1A lung cancer with no vascular invasion.
However, lung cancer can be treated and managed in a variety of ways, especially given recent advancements in modern medicine and oncology. Although there is always a chance that lung cancer can recur, the longer someone lives without evidence of cancer the lower the likelihood that it will come back.

06/How do you treat lung cancer?

Our lung cancer team, along with specialists from the Henry Ford Center for Lung Health, cares for more than 500 lung cancer patients every year. A team of specialists will discuss your particular case and develop a treatment plan specific to your health and your unique needs. Depending on which stage your lung cancer is in at diagnosis, your treatment may include:

• Ablation techniques (minimally invasive procedures to destroy tumors)
  Chemotherapy
• Clinical trials
• Immunotherapy
• Interventional pulmonology
• Lung cancer surgery
• Targeted therapy through our Precision Medicine program
• Radiation therapy