Can you have two kinds of NSCLC at one time? - 1246981

danygirl
Posts:1

My 58 year old dad was just diagnosed with lung cancer. They found a tumor that is about 7.5 cm big on his left lung and possibly in some lymph nodes and two small spots on his right lung. They say that the left lung is a squamous cell stage 2 or 3 and that the right lung is adenocarinoma cell stage 2. The tumor in the left lung is considered inoperable because it is too close to his heart. The cancer has spread nowhere else in his body. The doctors were not very optimistic because of it being two different kinds of nsclc. Right now we plan to start chemo and radiation in a week to see if we can shrink that tumor down, but the doctors worry that since it is two different kinds of cancer that they both won't take to the treatment. Has anybody ever heard of anyone having two kinds of nsclc? and if so what did they do to treat or cure it? Thank you!!

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Reply # - August 18, 2012, 10:04 AM

catdander
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Oh dear danygirl how difficult one cancer is not to mention the idea of 2 separate cancers. However 2 stage 2 lung cancers can both possibly be cured where 1 lung cancer that has crossed over into the other lung is considered stage 4 and not curable. It is being found that sometimes nsclc's are morphing from one type to another but this has mostly been seen in those who have already been treated.

This sounds very much like a good reason for a second opinion at a center with a specialty in lung cancer.

Thanks so much for your question, I'll reach out to one of our specialist to comment on your question. You should hear something by day's end.

I hope your dad does well,
Janine
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Reply # - August 18, 2012, 02:35 PM

Dr West
Posts: 4735

If someone has two kinds of cancer, that usually means that they arose independently. If both are early stage, they can potentially both be treated with curative intent, such as a surgery for two separate stage I lung cancers. If one or both are more advanced, it becomes pretty complicated, and there's no standard way to do things. If feasible, you try to combine the treatments that a person would need to have it be curable for each (such as chemo/radiation for locally advanced NSCLC on one side, and perhaps surgery or radiation for the other side). As Janine suggested, such cases may benefit from additional opinions, since they're always somewhat complicated.

Good luck.

-Dr. West

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