Advanced Cancer Diagnosis During COVID-19
- Steve McGregor, a 48-year-old retired paramedic began having breathing difficulties early this year, but it took 8 months for an in-person appointment with his GP, due to COVID-19.
- McGregor was diagnosed with advanced-stage lung cancer; treatment for this disease includes chemotherapy, radiation therapy, and sometimes, surgery.
- It’s important to be an advocate for your health and be “pushy” when necessary, experts tell SurvivorNet.
Lung Cancer Treatment Options
Treatment options for lung cancer include chemotherapy, radiation therapy, and surgery. The treatment path will be determined based on a patient’s prognosis and the stage of their cancer. Small cell lung cancer (a fast-growing type of the disease, which is often caused by smoking) treatment may also include palliative procedures, according to the American Cancer Society (ACS). Non-small cell lung cancer can include treatments such as targeted drug therapy and radiofrequency ablation, according to the ACS. For people with advanced lung cancer, like McGregor, it typically means the cancer has spread to other parts of the body, or metastasized.Related: Lung Cancer and Bone Health How to Protect Yourself
For some patients with advanced lung cancer, their treatment plan may focus on maintenance meaning, stopping the cancer from spreading farther in the body. This type of lung cancer is typically treated with chemotherapy, radiation therapy, targeted drug therapy, and immunotherapy. Patients who are battling lung cancer during COVID-19 should exercise extra caution when it comes to following the CDC’s COVID-19 safety guidelines (i.e. washing your hands, practicing social distancing, and wearing a mask).
Dr. Karen Reckamp, the Director of the Division of Medical Oncology at Cedars-Sinai, said in a previous interview, “For our patients with lung cancer, they are not at more risk for developing COVID-19. But because most patients who have lung cancer and have had treatment or are receiving treatment for lung cancer have some compromise to their lung function, we are concerned about the possibility of the COVID-19 developing into pneumonia or respiratory illness that may cause more severe illness for patients who have lung cancer.”
Related: It's Important To Continue Cancer Screenings Through COVID-19
“At this time, for patients with lung cancer or any type of cancer, still, the best thing we can do is to keep to ourselves,” said Dr. Reckamp, “and keep to the small groups of people that we are living with, to frequently wash our hands, clean off surfaces in the home, and minimize the amount of time that you are out of the home and interacting.”
What Do People With Lung Cancer Need to Know About COVID-19?
How to Advocate for Your Health
McGregor’s story highlights the need to advocate for your health, and to always speak up. Dr. Zuri Murrell, a Colorectal Surgeon, at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, said in a previous interview how speaking up for yourself is so important; he encourages people to be “pushy” when it comes to their health. “The truth is you have to be in tune with your body, and you realize that you are not the statistic,” said Dr. Murrell. “You are not necessarily going to fit into well, I don’t have to have a colonoscopy yet because I’m not 50, even though my bowel habits have changed, even though I’m having a lot of blood when I have a bowel movement.”
“That’s why it’s important for you to actually educate yourself and be your own health care advocate. And that’s something that I think is really important. You should lead each doctor’s appointment with a plan. So if I, as a 40-year-old, I come into a doctor’s office. I say, I’m having rectal bleeding. This is new for me. The doctor says, you know what? It’s probably hemorrhoids. First of all, I think, did they examine me? And a lot of times, especially a male, you’re actually happy that they didn’t examine you. But that’s not necessarily the right thing to do.”
Be Pushy, Be Your Own Advocate… Don't Settle
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