Surgery
There are several operations performed for lung cancer, depending upon the type and severity of the disease.
Surgery for SCCA patients is performed at University of Washington Medical Center, by thoracic surgeons who are among the best surgeons in the country.
It may take several weeks for you to recover from a lung operation. If your lungs are in otherwise good health, you can look forward to returning to normal activities even after a section or an entire lung is removed. However, if you have other medical problems, such as emphysema or chronic bronchitis--common among heavy smokers--this may complicate your recovery.
Non-small Cell Lung Cancer
Most people with non-small cell lung cancer that has not spread beyond the lung will be treated with surgery to remove the cancer. The two most common types of surgery are lobectomy and pneumonectomy. Surgery may be followed by chemotherapy or, less commonly, by radiation therapy, to destroy any remaining cancer cells.
Lobectomy
This is a surgical procedure in which an entire lobe of the lung is removed. If two lobes are removed, it is called a bilobectomy.
Pneumonectomy
In a pneumonectomy, an entire lung is removed. The size or location of your cancer may make this surgery necessary, rather than a lobectomy.
Segmentectomy
A segmentectomy (also called a wedge resection) is sometimes used to treat lung cancer in people whose lungs are too weak to tolerate the more radical surgeries. In this procedure, only the tumor and a small amount of surrounding lung tissue are removed.
Small Cell Lung Cancer
If you have small cell lung cancer, you doctor will probably not recommend surgery. Instead of surgery, this type of lung cancer is more often treated with chemotherapy or radiation therapy, or both.
New Procedure
There is a new procedure being used for some lung cancers called VATS or video-assisted thoracic surgery, a less invasive alternative to open chest surgery.
Surgery for SCCA patients is performed at University of Washington Medical Center, by thoracic surgeons who are among the best surgeons in the country.
It may take several weeks for you to recover from a lung operation. If your lungs are in otherwise good health, you can look forward to returning to normal activities even after a section or an entire lung is removed. However, if you have other medical problems, such as emphysema or chronic bronchitis--common among heavy smokers--this may complicate your recovery.
Non-small Cell Lung Cancer
Most people with non-small cell lung cancer that has not spread beyond the lung will be treated with surgery to remove the cancer. The two most common types of surgery are lobectomy and pneumonectomy. Surgery may be followed by chemotherapy or, less commonly, by radiation therapy, to destroy any remaining cancer cells.
Lobectomy
This is a surgical procedure in which an entire lobe of the lung is removed. If two lobes are removed, it is called a bilobectomy.
Pneumonectomy
In a pneumonectomy, an entire lung is removed. The size or location of your cancer may make this surgery necessary, rather than a lobectomy.
Segmentectomy
A segmentectomy (also called a wedge resection) is sometimes used to treat lung cancer in people whose lungs are too weak to tolerate the more radical surgeries. In this procedure, only the tumor and a small amount of surrounding lung tissue are removed.
Small Cell Lung Cancer
If you have small cell lung cancer, you doctor will probably not recommend surgery. Instead of surgery, this type of lung cancer is more often treated with chemotherapy or radiation therapy, or both.
New Procedure
There is a new procedure being used for some lung cancers called VATS or video-assisted thoracic surgery, a less invasive alternative to open chest surgery.