During this procedure the doctor may also obtain a biopsy or other sample of lung tissue and cells which are viewed under a microscope to determine if they are cancerous and if so, to identify the type of cancer involved. Biopsies of lung tissue or of the lymph nodes between the lungs may be performed using other techniques as well. Surgery may cure lung cancer. It is used in limited stages of the disease. Radiation therapy is a form of high energy X-rays.
Chemotherapy is the use of drugs that are effective against cancer cells.
In addition, discoveries in the diagnosis and treatment of lung cancer are being made. It is hoped that an oncogene test may soon be invented that will help in planning lung cancer treatment. This finding may help in identifying people at high risk of lung cancer, who should be more carefully observed for evidence of early lung cancer. Use of monoclonal antibodies that recognize only lung cancer cells. These antibodies are proteins that attach themselves to parts of the cancer cells, causing the cells to be destroyed in various ways.