Small Cell Lung Cancer Treatment
Small cell lung cancer or small cell lung carcinoma (SCLC), also known as the oat cell carcinoma, is less common. It usually originates in larger airways and rapidly grows allowing it to become large. This lung cancer type is strongly associated with smoking. It tends to start in the primary and secondary bronchi (larger airways) and grows quickly, becoming enlarged. The “oat” cell has dense vesicles containing neuroendocrine hormones (neurosecretory granules) that give it an endocrine or paraneoplastic syndrome association. Small cell lung carcinoma initially responds to chemotherapy but carries a worse prognosis. Often, it is of metastatic presentation. The most effective small cell lung cancer treatment is chemotherapy. Chemotherapy is the treatment of disease with the use of chemicals. Such chemicals for medication kill cells, good and bad, but are targeted to micro-organisms or cancerous tumors. Popularly, chemotherapy refers to the use of antineoplastic drugs or a combination of [...]