Hope for better treatment of microcellular lung cancer that has had an unfavorable prognosis for the last 30 years provided an international study with a Greek stamp, which was presented at the annual conference of the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) in Chicago, USA, (May 30th).

This is a type of lung cancer that relates to about 1 in 5 cases, which is clearly related to smoking and unfortunately has the most aggressive biological behavior compared to other types of lung cancer, said the first author of the study, who also made the most important MS Oncology clinic and clinical trial unit at Henry Dunnan Hospital.

As Mr. Mountzios explained, this type is called microcytic, because the cells look small under the microscope.

More than 80 centers and over 500 patients

“For 30 years, since I was a student and then a specialist, the only weapon we had for these patients was chemotherapy and very recently immunotherapy. But when our patients unfortunately relapsed after chemotherapy and immunotherapy (which we were given as a front -line therapy), then our choices were minimal and had very average results, with an average survival of about 8 months (after relapse).

So far, the average survival time in these patients, since the diagnosis, was unfortunately only 12-13 months. But the hopeful message we bring today is that there is now a new form of immunotherapy, which works in a very special way.

“That is, it brings the cancer cell together with the cell of our immune system, so that the immune cell can recognize and fight the cancer cell. This new form of immunotherapy was tested in a global clinical trial in over 80 centers worldwide, in more than 500 patients. He co -founded with classic second -line chemotherapy and appeared that this new immunotherapy reduces the risk of patient death by 40%. Which practically means that patients who do this new immunotherapy have a 40% lower risk of death than patients who did classical chemotherapy. “

Clinically significant improvement in symptoms

Can the patient be healing? The question is reasonably asked to the distinguished oncologist. “When we talk about microcellular lung cancer, extensive recurrent, unfortunately the chances of healing are small. But in the clinical study we saw incidents, even in our center, which despite the adverse prognosis and the second line of treatment, had long survival, which exceeded one and two years, on average.

And the average means that some of these patients may have a much longer survival, depending on the particularities of each.

Now, whether there is the opportunity to do what we call functional healing in some of these incidents is something that time will show. ”

As Mr Mountzios said elsewhere in his interview, the new immunotherapy was linked to clinically significant improvement in the relevant symptoms, such as shortness of breath and cough, less serious side effects and interruptions, as well as a better quality of life for patients.

How the new immunotherapy is administered- what side effects do not

According to Mr. Mountzio, the new immunotherapy is administered intravenously, per week for the first three times, (Day 1, Day 8, Day 15 which is admission therapy) and then every two weeks, for as long as the patient benefits.

It is lighter in the side effects than chemotherapy, it is the next question asked to the specialist. “It’s not chemotherapy with what this entails. Therefore, it does not drop hair, does not throw hematocrit, white, platelets, it does not have the most of these classic side effects we have associated with chemotherapy.

But one feature it makes is that because it activates the immune system very much and in some patients this activation may be too much, it causes an inflammation reaction to the body, and thus a small percentage of patients have a high fever, which needs monitoring of stress and heart function and breathing. “

Greek oncology excels – competing with overseas

I feel blessed to contribute to the global effort to relieve human pain from lung cancer

From my center, 12 patients joined this study and I have the pleasure of saying that we were the first center in Europe and one of the first in the world, in the number of patients, says Mr. Mundzios to add that other centers and three centers (with three centers, and three, in the publication in “The New England Journal of Medicine”). “The Greek centers and Greek oncology have both the infrastructure and the ability to participate in large world clinical trials and to excel in relation to traditional overseas gaps. Small countries such as our country, can substantially contribute to these global research efforts. Our study opens up very important paths for new immunotherapy drugs in microcyro -cell lung cancer, which are already “running” in Greece as well. ” For you personally, this announcement is what it means, is the last question asked to the top physician-oncologist: “It means a recognition of the effort and value of a Greek oncologist who lives and works in Greece and not abroad, because here the difficulties and challenges are even greater. I feel really blessed and lucky to have been able to contribute to the global effort to relieve human pain from lung cancer. “