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Multi-Specialty Team
Focuses on Lung Cancer Treatment
Marie Dalton hadn’t been feeling well for awhile and thought she had a lingering cold when she visited her physician in Bloomfield, D. J. Nagengast, M.D. Instead, Dalton soon found she had lung cancer and was referred to the Carson Cancer Center for treatment.
For Dalton and others like her diagnosed with lung cancer, there are now more options for treatment available at Faith Regional.
“We now have a complete multi-specialty team in place for treating lung cancer,” said Daniel Iltchev, M.D., a pulmonologist at Faith Regional Pulmonology Services. Dr. Iltchev, along with Mohammed Zahra, M.D., a radiation oncologist at the Carson Cancer Center, and Alec Akbarov, M.D., a thoracic and cardiovascular surgeon at Faith Regional CardioVascular Institute, work closely together in determining appropriate care for the lung cancer patients.
“We’re able to come up with the best available treatment plan involving all of the care needed right here,” said Dr. Akbarov. “Treatment can be surgery, radiation therapy with chemotherapy, or a combination of these.”
Lung cancer alone will account for about 13% of all new cases of cancer in 2005, according to the American Cancer Society. More people die from lung cancer than from colon, breast and prostate cancer combined. Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer death among both men and women.
“Symptoms of lung cancer can be vague, but can include excessive coughing, weight loss, shortness of breath or coughing up phlegm with blood,” Dr. Iltchev added. “A change in condition over just a few weeks to a couple of months can be an indication [of lung cancer].” Usually when symptoms appear, the cancer is already in advanced stages, making successful treatment extremely difficult.
Early detection of lung cancer is key. The percentage of patients diagnosed with lung cancer in the earliest stages who live at least five years after diagnosis is about 49%. However, only 16% of people with lung cancer are diagnosed at this early, localized stage. If the cancer has spread to lymph nodes, the five-year survival rate is 17%.
“I strongly urge anyone who has smoked over 20 years to get at least a yearly chest x-ray or preferably a CT scan,” stated Dr. Akbarov. “This is the best chance for early detection.”
The largest contributing risk factor to developing lung cancer is smoking. “People who smoke have 20 times the risk than non-smokers,” Dr. Akbarov added. “It’s very alarming that 25% of Americans smoke.”
The majority of lung cancer patients Dr. Iltchev sees are 50-60 years of age and have smoked for 30-40 years. Dalton, age 70, smoked nearly 45 years.
Environmental factors can also contribute toward greater risks of developing lung cancer and, when combined with smoking, raise the risk even higher. These include excessive drinking, asbestos exposure, insecticide manufacturing, mining and second-hand smoke.
“Now, because we have this complete team, we can provide a quicker and faster plan of initializing treatment in one place,” Dr. Zahra noted. “Lung cancer patients no longer have to drive to Omaha to receive some of their treatment.”
Dalton, who has been receiving care at the Carson Cancer Center, couldn’t agree more. “I’ve had fantastic care—they are great.”
Last Updated: 7/24/2006
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