Advances in science and technology have led to more options for extending the lives of those stricken with lung cancer, although patients in the later stages of lung cancer often assume they only have about six months to live.
Many targeted treatments are available, but some patients still refuse treatment, fearing the effects of chemotherapy or radiation treatment, such as the formation of other cancers.
However, Tho said the problem is gravely misunderstood by the public.
“Chemotherapy, for instance, is given in small doses at a time and it would take 10 to 30 years for another cancer to form. But the initial diagnosis is much more life-threatening if not treated,” he told FMT in an interview to mark World No-Tobacco Day.
Tobacco smoking is the most common worldwide cause of lung cancer, but in Malaysia up to 50% of patients are non-smokers, Tho said.
He said treatment for lung cancer is based on the severity of the illness and the patient’s medical history.
Another common myth is that only men get lung cancer. “This isn’t the case at all as we see women between 30 and 50 years old being diagnosed with the disease. The disease doesn’t discriminate,” said Tho.
“There are other factors like air pollution too and currently, studies are being conducted to determine whether the disease is hereditary,” he said.
However, consultant cardiothoracic surgeon Dr Anand Sachithanandan, citing the Malaysian national cancer registry report 2012-2016, said that lung cancer is the second most common cancer among Malaysian men and has the highest mortality rate.
“The 5-year relative survival rate is 11%: in a group of 100 people with all four stages of lung cancer, alarmingly, only 11 will survive to five years,” he said.
The poor outcome arises as almost 95% of patients are only diagnosed when the disease has advanced to stage 3 or 4. “This is tragic because if detected early, lung cancer is more amenable to treatments with curative intent,” he said.
Anand and Tho are heads of the Lung Cancer Network Malaysia (LCNM) which he said was set up to improve outcomes for the disease through greater awareness, education and advocacy.
“Lung cancer is a dreadful disease, but it is curable if detected early. The first step is to get checked and I cannot emphasise enough the importance of screening which only takes 15 seconds,” he said, adding that screening is highly beneficial for current or former heavy smokers and those with a family history of lung cancer.
LCNM is running a public awareness campaign ‘Hope For Survival’ to educate the public on lung diseases and also inspire new hope for survival for people living with lung cancer. Learn more about lung cancer at https://www.lungcancer.net.my/.