I have been diagnosed with lung cancer. I have no symptoms they found a shadow on a chest xray in Dec 2023. Since then scans/biopsies etc, I was told on Tuesday I would need the left removing. However before that I would need some immunotherapy. Why the need for immunotherapy when they just remove the lung.
Also how long before I start treatment for the immunotherapy.
Hi Psuche
Thank you for getting in touch with us. My name is Lynsay, and I am one of the information nurses with Macmillan Cancer Support. Welcome to the online community, I hope you find this to be a helpful and supportive environment.
I am sorry to hear about your recent diagnosis of lung cancer. Getting a cancer diagnosis can came a quite a shock, especially as you were not experiencing any symptoms. Just so you know we are here to help in any way we can including emotional support as well as answering any questions you may have.
You are more than welcome to call us on the support line if it would be helpful to have a chat with us, it can sometime be easier to give you a fuller answer over the phone and gives you the chance to ask any other questions you may have.
Having treatment like immunotherapy before surgery can be beneficial in reducing the risk of the cancer coming back after surgery. The immunotherapy is often combined with chemotherapy and given before surgery and this can help to shrink the tumour and improve your outcomes after surgery. The benefits of giving chemo-immunotherapy before surgery for lung cancer was shown through a trial called the CheckMate 816 study.
I am not sure if you were advised about having chemotherapy combined with immunotherapy of just having immunotherapy alone, but your treatment team would be able to confirm this and explain the potential benefits of having treatment before surgery.
We are unfortunately unable to tell you how long it will be until you start your treatment as we are not part of the NHS, so we have no access to this information. However, after you have agreed with the treatment plan that was discussed with you, treatment usually starts quite quickly after this. This can be within a few weeks. Hopefully you have been given the contact number of a cancer nurse specialist at the hospital you attend. They will be able to give you more of an idea of when your treatment is likely to start.
I hope this is helpful. Please don’t hesitate to get back in touch with us if you have further questions.
All the very best ,
Lynsay
You can also speak with the Macmillan Support Line team of experts. Phone free on 0808 808 0000 (7 days a week, 8am-8pm) or send us an email.
Ref MH
