Asked for Male, 37
What is moderately differentiated squamous cell carcinoma lung? What are the treatment options?
Answered on 4th Jan '25
Moderately differentiated squamous lung cancer is a subtype of squamous cell carcinoma (SCC), which is a non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) that originates in the squamous cells lining the airways of the lungs. The term “moderately differentiated” refers to how much the cancer cells resemble normal squamous cells under a microscope. Moderately differentiated tumors fall between well-differentiated (resembling normal cells more closely) and poorly differentiated (showing more aggressive and abnormal features).
Characteristics of Squamous Cell Lung Cancer:
• Location: Often found in the central parts of the lungs, near the bronchi.
• Risk Factors: Smoking is the leading risk factor, though other exposures (e.g., asbestos or air pollution) may contribute.
• Symptoms: Can include cough, shortness of breath, chest pain, weight loss, and hemoptysis (coughing up blood).
Treatment Options:
Treatment depends on factors like the stage of the cancer, the patient’s overall health, and molecular characteristics. The main options include:
1. Surgery:
• Suitable for early-stage disease (Stage I and some Stage II cancers).
• Types of surgery:
• Lobectomy: Removal of a lobe of the lung.
• Pneumonectomy: Removal of an entire lung.
• Segmentectomy or wedge resection: Removal of a smaller portion of the lung.
• May be combined with other treatments (e.g., chemotherapy or radiation).
2. Radiation Therapy:
• Often used for patients who cannot undergo surgery or as an adjunct to surgery.
• Can help shrink tumors, relieve symptoms, or treat localized disease.
3. Chemotherapy:
• Often used for advanced stages (Stages III-IV) or after surgery to reduce the risk of recurrence.
• Common drugs include platinum-based regimens like cisplatin or carboplatin combined with other agents (e.g., gemcitabine or paclitaxel).
4. Immunotherapy:
• Drugs like immune checkpoint inhibitors (e.g., pembrolizumab, nivolumab) can be used for advanced or metastatic squamous cell carcinoma.
• These boost the immune system to attack cancer cells.
5. Targeted Therapy:
• Less common in squamous cell lung cancer, as it often lacks common mutations targeted by therapies (e.g., EGFR or ALK mutations).
• However, molecular testing may identify actionable mutations in some cases.
Asked for Female, 57
I want to know about Triple-negative breast cancer as our doctor hinted that my aunt has signs of this specific type of breast cancer.
Answered on 21st June '24
Triple negative breast cancer means the growth of cancer cells is not affected by estrogen, progesterone and her2neu pathways. Thus remedies employing alteration of these will not work. Her treatment will depend on the stage and might involve surgery, radiation and chemotherapy. Visit an oncologist or surgical oncologist in mumbai for further advice.
Asked for Female, 41
Hello sir, my wife told me yesterday that there is a lump around her breast. What further steps should I take to determine if it is cancerous or not? As of now, the lump around her breast is painless. Do I need to visit an oncologist?
Answered on 19th June '24
Yes it could be cancer. You should visit an oncologist or surgical oncologist for further investigation and treatment.
Please tell me how Mastectomy works. Are breasts conserved in this treatment or are they removed in this procedure?
Answered on 19th June '24
Mastectomy involves removal of breast. For cancer however if its limited to a small portion of breast, we can conserve the breast while removing a part of breast followed by reconstruction. Kindly visit a surgical oncologist in Mumbai for further details.
Hello. My Mother is in Bangladesh and has been diagnosed with breast cancer. She has a lump of 2x0.2x0.2 cm and Nuclear grade II.
Could you please let me know -
1. what is the stage of her cancer?
2. What would be the treatment?
3. What would be the cost for treatment in India.
Thanks and regards,
Answered on 19th June '24
The staging will depend on the status of lymph nodes and other factors. Treatment will include surgery as major part along with chemo and radiation. You can visit a surgical oncologist in Mumbai for advice for the same.
Breast cancer stage 2 B doctors from my country told me that the only option is surgery takeoff the breast then after Wil start chemo .my worry is losing my breast and the after side effect.Now my question is that can surgery be done only where there's a lump? Which hospitals in India are good for those surgeries if they do it.
Answered on 19th June '24
Its best to remove the lump with reconstruction if needed to preserve the shape of breast. There are many hospitals in India which are good. Alternatively you can connect with me if you plan to come to Mumbai for treatment.
Asked for Female, 46
Hello, I want to know if breasts are removed in Breast Cancer surgeries, or are there any other methods in which there is no need of removing the whole breasts?
Answered on 19th June '24
The answer depends on the tumor size and stage of cancer. Presurgery chemotherapy may reduce the size of tumor and removal of a part of breast may suffice the oncological control. Also there are multiple options of reconstruction for partial as well as total breast removal. Important thing is oncological control. You can meet a surgical oncologist who will explain in detail. --- Dr. Akash Dhuru (Surgical Oncologist)
Asked for Female, 24
Can axillary fibroadenoma be treated with medicine? If not what is the process and cost of surgery? Is there any chance of future malignancy
Answered on 19th June '24
Treatment is by surgery and the specimen will be sent for Histopathological examination for confirming diagnosis. Previous benign breast pathologies have slightly higher risk than general population, though the standard screening protocol of SBE and CBE should be followed. You can connect to me for further information. --- Dr. Akash Dhuru (Surgical Oncologist)
Asked for Male, 61
My father has secondary liver cancer and his condition is deteriorating every day. We can't see him like this. Please advise the next course of action.
Answered on 6th June '24
The treatment would depend on the status( of the primary cancer (colorectal, lung, pancreas) and also the status of liver metastasis (resectable or ablatable). Also if the primary is controlled and in presence of only liver metastasis there is a role of liver transplantation in selected patients. Kindly visit a surgical oncologist for determining the correct approach.
Asked for Female, 30
Hi, my breasts are small, can you offer any suggestion?
Answered on 6th June '24
Since I dont know your status, it depends on your future decisions. If you are planning to get married in near future and have children, sometime there is an increase in size of breasts which persists even after completion of lactation. If your goal is to enlarge breasts without any other considerations, you can think of augmentation techniques like implants or fat grafting or other techniques.
Asked for Male, 65
Hello sir, my dad was diagnosed with bile duct cancer in October. He is currently 65 years old. He refused to treat because of the terrible adverse effects, and he believes he would have died due to the side effects. Is there any other approach to treat him so that he doesn't have to go through the trauma?
Answered on 6th June '24
Would like to know the stage and anatomical extent of the cancer before giving an opinion. There are surgical and nonsurgical approaches which depend on multiple factors and each patient needs tailored approach.
