Can you survive lung cancer?

A friend had recently been diagnosed with lung cancer. It is in a position which makes it impossible to remove by surgery.
Also it is on the outside of his lung. They have taken a biopsy to find out what type of cancer it is, but we will not find out the results for a while.
Can you survive lung cancer? What is the likelihood of treatment working? Has anyone heard of this type of lung cancer (on the outside) or has anyone you know suffered from it?
Any advice?

Lung cancer is a serious diagnosis as I am sure you are aware. I know someone who had one lung completely removed due to lung cancer and has survived. Much depends on how the patient responds to treatment. In many cases, whilst the cancer cannot be "cured" advances in treatment can mean that the cancer can be managed and the patient's life will be extended. Clearly, if your friend smokes, I would suggest they stop immediately.

I am sorry for your friend - I hope that the prognosis is positive. x

There are several types of lung cancers. Some are more invasive than others. In this case the fact it cannot be removed is likely not good. Early detection is good to arrest it before it has a chance to spread. Once lung cancer spreads it is usually too late. Perhaps in this case they will try chemo. or radiation to try and kill it.

You need to go to a cancer survivor site. There are plenty of people who have survived lung cancer and are living today. My mother in law had cancer I can't even remember how many years ago it was and she is now 85. I know its been at least 15 years. So your answer is yes. But go to some of the sites and look at what others have to say and what they did. You need to support your friend as much as you can. So get as much info as you can so you can help her she will need you. I have RSDS and lost all my friends because no one new about and they thought I was crazy and I'm 42 and now have had for almost 2 years and getting treated in TX and I live in Ca. So please be her friend unlike mine I told them to go to RSDSHope and look what was but they all didn't and gave up on me. Thank God for my best friend my husband that stayed by my side for over a year not know what it was just severe pain 24/7. He did research and found the Dr. and got me out and probally only had 2 weeks left. So encourage her and learn what you can about so you can support her. I know how it feels to be alone almost. Good Luck

Yes you can survive lung cancer and many more people are doing so. It is not necessary always to have surgery very good results can be achieved through chemo and radio therapy. It's the word cancer that can be so frightening, I am a cancer survivor - mine was on the kidney and I can appreciate how your friend must be feeling. Please wait till you get the results it may not be as bad as you fear the growth could be benign. I wish your friend all the very best and I will be saying a prayer for them.

There is always hope and medical research is moving forward so quickly in this area. There are promising new drugs which work by suppressing the EGFR which might be applicable in the case of your friend. The important thing is to fight it because you never know what another day will bring. Ask your GP to check on the background of the medic treating your friend. Is he really a specialist in this area? Get second opinions and really battle away. All the best.

I am going to be totally honest with you on this one, my mum found out she had Lung cancer in November 06, she had a biopsy done and we found out it was terminal in December 06, sadly she passed away on January 6th of this year, less than 2 months after being diagnosed.
Her cancer had spread so rapidly there was no treatment available for her, she was to sick for the chemo and radiotherapy was out of the question as it had spread to her breast, Lymph nodes and her bowel.
I don't mean to upset or offend anybody with my answer, this is my own personal experience with lung cancer and my heart truly goes out to your friend and his/her family!

Yes, you can survive lung cancer. But you need to understand that survival depends on many, many factors . . first you need the exact name of the cancer. Is this a primary lung cancer or a secondary lung cancer? You will than need to know the grade and stage of the disease. You will also need to factor in your friends age, overall health, and his response to treatment.

Cancer is complicated and you will receive contradictory responses based on what others have experienced. What you should know is that medical science when it concerns cancer is changing rapidly. What was true or known six months ago may already be dated.

I would encourage your friend to go to a designated comprehensive cancer facility where they treat this type of disease. I would also encourage him to read and do the research to locate the best possible treatment available. If it is not possible to go to these facilities, it may be possible for his primary oncologist to confer with them.

National Cancer Institute: Cancer Centers
http://cancercenters.cancer.gov/cancer_c...

As for the cancer on the outside of the lung. There are several different types and subtypes of lung cancer and all of them are different. The two most common types are Small Cell Lung cancer and Non-small cell lung cancer. Perhaps your friend has a subtype of one of these?

Medline Plus: Lung Cancer
http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/lungc...

National Cancer Institute: Lung Cancer Treatment
http://www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/types...

NCCN: Lung Cancer Treatment Guideline for Patients
http://www.nccn.org/patients/patient_gls...

Best wishes to you.

i am a cancer survivor(so far). i found a great support group at www.careplace.com/communities. it is a friendly site for people and supporters of those who have various conditions to share their stories and answer questions. best wishes and prayers to you and your friend.

My Father died from lung cancer and so did My Partner's Grandfather.Both had primary lung cancer with no secondaries.
I don't know whether you can survive if surgery isn't an option-it wasn't an option in both these cases though.My experience with my Father was similar to Jackie's though-he was diagnosed in December 05 and died Jan 06-less than a month in between.

Of course you can survive cancer! even this kind. Your friend should read up on cancer as much as possible and remove every possible cause of it from his lifestyle. My mum has breast cancer and has gone on an almost vegan diet, has stopped using all toxic chemical filled cosmetics. (it's disgusting how much cancer-causing junk there is in everyday things) and has done all sorts of therapy (eg. herbal, spiritual etc). By doing this she has decreased the lump by a half in the last month and some smaller ones have gone all together - she doesn't even need surgery any more. There are loads of books around written by people who have survived cancer about how they did it plus loads on getting yourself super healthy (my mum would recommend 'turbo charge your life in 14 days' and '7lbs in 7 days' by Jason Vale aka the juice master)
It just takes will power which is of course worth it when you have your life on the line.
I hope you'll pass this on to your friend and I wish him the very best of luck.

I have heard of people who change their pH levels from acidic to alkaline and the cancer eventually goes away. They do this by changing their diet drastically. I don't know if it's a sure fire way to beat it but do a search if you're interested.