Lung cancer treatment in South Korea

For lung cancer treatment in South Korea, the Lung and Esophageal Cancer Center at Samsung Hospital is the place we recommend as the main option. First of all, the institution has performed the most lung cancer surgeries in South Korea during the last 10 years.

Especially relevant, the Cancer Center counts with doctors from the pulmonology, hematology, oncology, thoracic surgery, radiation oncology, radiology, pathology and nuclear medicine departments. This integrated approach to treatment allows them to achieve the lowest mortality rates in South Korea.

Severance Hospital is another medical institution exceeding in lung cancer treatment in South Korea. The Lung Cancer Center also embraces a multidisciplinary approach to treatment. It has put hard effort to improve the quality of chemotherapy to reduce the side effects.

Here you will find a table with key information about lung cancer diagnosis, treatment and surgery:

** Time and prices are just estimations. Every case is assess by the healthcare provider to determine the cost of treatment. 

What is lung cancer?

Lung cancer accounts for approximately 14% of the total oncology cases. Without taking in consideration breast cancer (found mainly in women) and prostate cancer (particular to men), this type is the second most common of all cancers. Moreover, lung cancer is responsible for one-fourth of the total number of cancer-related deaths. Although smokers have a higher risk to develop it, every man has 1 in 14 chance to be diagnosed with lung cancer, while every woman has 1 in 17.

There are two main types of lung cancer. The first one is Small cell lung cancer or SCLC and counts for about 10 to 15% of the cases. The second type is Non-small cell lung cancer or NSCLC. Doctors divide this into 3 kinds (adenocarcinoma, squamous cell carcinoma and large cell carcinoma). It represents 80 to 85% of cases.

Usually, lung cancer cells initiate in the cells lining in the bronchi and in the bronchioles and alveoli (lung parts). The cells grow out of normal proportions and they start forming a tumor with the risk of spreading to other areas of the body. The early detection of the disease is vital. Unfortunately, there are few cases presenting clear symptoms, which makes detection difficult.

In addition, lots of people confuse the cancer symptoms for other respiratory diseases, delaying medical tests. The recommendation is for people between 55 to 74 years old that have smoked over the last 15 years over 30 packs of cigarettes (estimation) to contact their doctors and consider medical screening.

Is there any specialized medical screening test for lung cancer?

There are respiratory examinations that include chest X-ray and pulmonary function tests in addition to the common low-dose chest CT. This type of radiation does not need an intravenous contrast dye (IV) and has proven to be highly effective detecting signs of lung cancer. These procedures are part of “advance check ups” available in our partner’s check up centers.

Note on lung cancer treatment: http://businesswire.com/news/home/20160517005845/en/South-Korea-approve-generation-lung-cancer-treatment (This page does not reflect the opinion or recommendation from Medical Avenue. Moreover, it should be read just as an external reference to lung cancer treatment.)