Understanding Small Cell Lung Cancer

*Please note: This slide show is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always consult your doctor about any questions you may have regarding a medical condition.

How do healthy lungs function?

When you inhale, the lungs transfer oxygen from the air to your blood. When you exhale, they take carbon dioxide from your blood and get rid of it.

What is lung cancer?

Lung cancer is a disease caused by the unchecked growth and spread of some cells in the lungs.

How common is lung cancer?

In the U.S., lung cancer is the second most diagnosed cancer and the number one cause of cancer death.

Each year in the U.S., nearly 240,000 people are diagnosed with lung cancer and approximately 130,000 die of the disease.

What is important to know about small cell lung cancer (SCLC)?

Small cell lung cancer (SCLC) is one of two major types of lung cancer. The other is non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC).

What is important to know about small cell lung cancer (SCLC)?

Compared to NSCLC, SCLC is:

• More aggressive
• More likely to spread outside the lung
• Not usually treated with surgery
• More likely than NSCLC to respond to chemotherapy and radiation

How common is SCLC?

SCLC is the second most common type of lung cancer.

SCLC affects about 1 of every 10 people with lung cancer.

What causes SCLC?

While there is no single cause of SCLC, it is often linked to smoking.

Like most other adult cancers, SCLC is caused by a build-up of damage to cells. Over many years, this damage gives some cells the ability to grow, multiply, and spread out of control. The possible causes of this damage are called risk factors.

Will lung cancer spread?

Lung cancer can be dangerous even if it does not spread. It can grow into important structures in the chest, such as the airway. Or, more commonly, it can spread through the bloodstream to other organs in the body.

Will lung cancer spread?

When cancer has spread to other organs in your body, it is called metastasis.

What is the most important risk factor for SCLC?

Cigarette smoking is the biggest risk factor for SCLC. The risk increases based on how long and how many packs you smoked. Up to 2.5% of SCLC patients never smoked.

What are other risk factors for SCLC?

Other risk factors for SCLC are:

• Being exposed at home or work to:
• Second-hand smoke (breathing someone else’s smoke)
• Radon (a radioactive gas found in the soil)
• Arsenic, asbestos, beryllium, cadmium, chromium, nickel, soot, or tar
• Prior radiation therapy to the breast or chest
• Up to 10% of EGFR-mutant NSCLC transform to SCLC

What are other risk factors for SCLC?

Other risk factors can also include:

• Living where there is air pollution
• Having parents or siblings with lung cancer
• Having had other types of cancer like breast cancer, colon cancer, or prostate cancer
• Having had lung diseases like emphysema, chronic bronchitis, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), and tuberculosis
• Aging

What are the symptoms of SCLC?

The symptoms of SCLC are not specific. Possible symptoms are:

• A cough that won't go away or gets worse
• Coughing up blood
• Rust-colored spit
• Chest pains that get worse if you take deep breaths, cough, or laugh
• Hoarse voice

What are the symptoms of SCLC?

Other symptoms include:

• Weight loss and loss of appetite
• Shortness of breath
• Feeling tired or weak
• A lung infection (bronchitis or pneumonia) that won’t go away or keeps coming back
• Wheezing with no known cause (like asthma)

Can lung cancer be prevented?

Researchers haven’t found any drugs, vitamins, herbal remedies, or alternative medicines that can help prevent lung cancer.

How can I reduce my risk of lung cancer?

The most important thing you can do to lower your risk of SCLC is don’t smoke (such as cigarettes, cigars, and pipes).

Other things you can do:

• Avoid second-hand smoke
• Avoid radon and other cancer-causing chemicals
• Eat a healthy diet
• If you get your water from a well, test the water for arsenic

What factors increase survival?

Having a small cancer that hasn’t spread outside the lung increases survival.

What are my treatment options for SCLC?

SCLC is commonly treated with chemotherapy and/or radiation therapy. Other treatments could include surgery, immunotherapy, or clinical trials.

What determines my personal treatment for SCLC?

Your options depend on your:

• Cancer stage (type, size, location, and spread of the tumor)
• Biopsy and blood test results
• Symptoms
• Age and general health
• Preferences

How do you decide on treatment for SCLC?

Your doctor will explain the recommended treatment options.

Make a plan together.

How do you decide on treatment for SCLC?

Ask lots of questions, for example:

• What stage is my cancer?
• What are my treatment options?
• What side effects can I expect?
• How can I prepare for treatment?
• What are the goals?
• How likely is it to succeed?

When you meet with your doctor, be sure to:

• Explain your worries and wishes
• Consider getting a second opinion
• Ask if there are any clinical trials you could join

Can my cancer be cured?

Ask your doctor if your cancer can be cured.

New treatments have helped people with small cell lung cancer live longer than ever before.