Hak Choy, MD, Nancy B. & Jake L. Hamon Distinguished Chair in Therapeutic Oncology Research, Department of Radiation Oncology, UT Southwestern Medical Center, discuses therapy for patients with oligometastatic lung cancer.

This is a unique subset of patients whose cancer has spread, but only to a limited area, says Choy. The overall prognosis for these patients is better than stage IV, but not necessarily as good as stage III. Choy says that the focus now is on overall survival, not just progression free survival. To achieve that, some patients may benefit from aggressive upfront local therapy. Options for aggressive upfront therapy are local radiation therapy or radiation plus immunotherapy, which Choy says is a hot topic.

Patients who have limited metastases or limited progression after initial chemotherapy or immunotherapy are the best-suited candidates for local therapy with either radiation therapy or radiation plus immunotherapy, according to Choy. Local therapy can be applied to about 3 to 5 disease sites, he adds.

Videos

Hak Choy, MD, Nancy B. & Jake L. Hamon Distinguished Chair in Therapeutic Oncology Research, Department of Radiation Oncology, UT Southwestern Medical Center, discuses therapy for patients with oligometastatic lung cancer.
 

Dr. Choy Discusses Therapy for Oligometastatic Lung Cancer

Hak Choy, MD, professor and chairman of radiation oncology at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, discusses radiation and immunotherapy in lung cancer.

Radiation is one of the most potent immune stimulates, says Choy. Radiation stimulates the immune system in the tumor and in normal tissue in patients, creating natural killer T-cells.

The combination of radiation, an immune stimulate, with immunotherapy, has the potential to be an effective treatment, says Choy. There are many trials underway that are exploring this option.

Hak Choy, MD

Articles

Dr. Choy Discusses Therapy for Oligometastatic Lung Cancer

Dr. Hak Choy on Radiation and Immunotherapy in Combination in Lung Cancer