Lung cancer claims more lives than any other cancer. Nonetheless, recent advances in oncology are encouraging because doctors in developed countries successfully cure early-stage lung cancer, and the advanced stages of the disease can be controlled for many years. You are welcome to use the Booking Health service to get medical care in Germany. Here you can find the best hospitals for lung cancer treatment with the real cost of procedures and surgical interventions.
Early-stage cancer treatment: surgery alone is enough
The easiest task for doctors is to cure stage 0 cancer when the tumor has not yet invaded deeper than the bronchial mucosa. The first-choice technique in such a situation is a segmentectomy or a pulmonary wedge resection. Doctors remove a small part of the lung tissue, so the respiratory function is completely preserved after the operation. Stage 0 lung cancer can sometimes be cured without surgery but with an endoscopic procedure, such as brachytherapy (internal tumor irradiation) or photodynamic therapy (laser irradiation after the injection of a photosensitiser). Unfortunately, only a small number of tumors are detected at such an early stage. This can only happen by chance while being examined for another lung disease.
Stage 1 lung cancer treatment in Germany is carried out with the help of surgery. If successful, a patient will not require any additional treatments. Doctors remove a lobe of the lung (lobectomy), but less often they limit themselves to removing a segment. Lymph nodes are also removed to check them for cancer cells. To treat stage 1 cancer, doctors often perform minimally invasive thoracoscopic surgery through short incisions, and the best specialised centers in Germany perform the safest and most sparing robot-assisted surgery.
When do patients require combination treatment
Stage 2 cancer treatment begins with surgery, namely a lobectomy. Sometimes the entire lung has to be removed (pneumonectomy). Then additional treatment is required, which may include chemotherapy, and some patients also require radiation therapy and immunotherapy. If the tumor is larger than 4 cm when it is detected, doctors may start treatment with chemotherapy and immunotherapy, followed by surgery. In the case of mutations in the EGFR gene, targeted therapy can also be used.
The patients with stage 3A require combination treatment: surgery, radiation therapy, and chemotherapy. Immunotherapy can sometimes be used as well. Chemoradiation is often the first treatment to shrink the tumor and eliminate some of the metastases. This treatment is followed by surgery.
Treatment of advanced lung cancer
3B and 4 stage lung cancer can rarely be cured, but it can be controlled for a long time. Doctors use chemoradiotherapy, targeted therapy, and immunotherapy. Healthcare professionals use bronchial artery embolisation to locally control the tumor and eliminate bleeding. They can restore airway patency with the help of endoscopic procedures, such as laser vaporisation, photodynamic therapy, brachytherapy, and bronchial stenting. Chemical pleurodesis can be performed to eliminate malignant pleurisy, and if it does not work, doctors carry out minimally invasive thoracoscopic surgery to remove the pleura.
Stage 4A cancer can rarely be cured. For example, if only one brain metastasis is found, doctors may perform surgery to remove a part of the lung and a metastatic focus. Another option is a lobectomy combined with stereotactic radiotherapy to destroy metastases with radiation.
You are welcome to visit the Booking Health website to see prices, and make your appointment for lung cancer diagnostics and treatment in Germany. You can select a hospital and leave your request on our website. Our company’s employees will contact you, help you to make a choice, advise on all issues and organise your trip abroad. When making your treatment appointment through the Booking Health service, the cost of medical services will be lower for you due to the absence of additional fees for foreign patients.
