HYPERTHEMIA and Lung Cancer

Usually, in the metastatic stage of the lung cancer, chemotherapy will be the treatment option for most of the lung cancer victims. Sometimes, chemotherapy alone cannot be able to produce positive results. Therefore it needs some other treatment options to assist. One such treatment is whole body hyperthermia. In whole body hyperthermia, the entire body is heated for the treatment which is helpful in makes the chemotherapy to work better. The temperature of the whole body of lung cancer patient is increased by warm water blankets or immersing the patient in warm water.

Also a big incubator called as thermal chambers are also use to raise the heat of the lung cancer patient. The main reason is that, heating makes some of the immune cells to be very active for next certain period of time. Some other studies have proved that, whole body hyperthermia along with chemotherapy are used to increase the overall immune response of the lung cancer patient’s body. Since the temperature range used I this treatment is around 42 degree Celsius, it is also called as fever range hyperthermia.

Unlike local hyperthermia, in regional hyperthermia a whole organ or a part of the body will be heated. The main use of this treatment technique is to enhance the performance of chemotherapy and radiation therapy treatments. There is a technique called isolation perfusion is carried out in regional hyperthermia. In this technique, the blood circulation near the lung part is sopped and the blood is taken and heated and then diffuses again into the body of the patient.

Chemotherapy can also be given along with this treatment. Usually, isolation perfusion will be carried out under general anesthesia. The treatment time and the condition of the organ will determine temperature range used for this treatment. Another type of technique used is deep tissue. In this technique, the heating device is placed on the surface above the lungs. Then the region of the lungs is heated using the device. The device emits high energy waves into the lung cancer region. Mainly the devices use radio frequency waves in the treatment of deep tissue technique.

Though hyperthermia is a good technique to treat cancer like lung cancer, liver cancer, etc., it is not widely used. As of now, this treatment is just in an experimental stage. Many researchers have been working on in this field to gain more knowledge about the hyperthermia and the tools and techniques used in the same. Many clinical trials should be done in order to have a better understanding to implement this treatment technique successfully. For example, researches are going on to implant nano particles in the tumor using a new technique of heating.

Also scientists are continued to find out the best way of implementing hyperthermia which helps in improving the performance of other cancer treatments. In additional, analyses are taken place to treat the deeper organs which cannot not treated by usual hyperthermia. There are many online websites available to receive the correct information about the hyperthermia treatment techniques. The updates about the treatment will also be posted on these websites. Therefore, people can make use of these online websites.

The major advantage of regional hyperthermia treatment of lung cancer is that the treatment is helpful in proper functioning of other cancer treatments. Also heating the cancer cells up to the temperature of 100 degree Celsius can destroy the cancer cells easily and effectively than the other types of cancer treatment like chemotherapy. But there is constraint that the temperature should be in control. Many scientists agree that hyperthermia is an effective treatment of lung cancer and other type of cancer but only when it is taken place within the prescribed range of temperature for certain period of time.

Also there is a disadvantage that some tissues are more sensitive to heat and some are less sensitive. This can become a problem when heat affects the more sensitive tissues which are near to the cancer affected region. Another problem is monitoring the temperature in a particular place is difficult. But there are some new tools are developed in order to make the hyperthermia treatment as a successful on treating lung cancer.

Radio frequency ablation is the most normally used type of local hyperthermia which is an internal type. The basic behind this treatment is the use of radio frequency waves in destroying the lung cancer cells. The procedure for this treatment goes like the below. Initially, a thin needle type probe is injected into the region of cancer cells in the lungs, and then high energy radio waves are released by the tip of the probe for a period of 20-30 minutes.

The position of the probe is monitored by the ultrasound scans. The temperature is raised to 50 degree Celsius to 100 degree Celsius which is capable of destroying the cancer cells. The dead cells are usually not removed, but in few days they shrink and vanish. This treatment is mainly carried out for the lung cancer patients who are able to withstand the pain of the surgical treatments to remove the cancer cells. We can say that local hyperthermia treatment is a gift for those patients who cannot tolerate the pain.