What Black Americans Need to Know Clinical Trials for Lung Cancer

Lung cancer, or bronchogenic carcinoma, is the collective name for cancers that start in the lungs— usually in the airways (bronchi or bronchioles) or small air sacs (alveoli). Lung cancer is known for its aggressive nature and high mortality rate.  Eric Singhi, M.D., Assistant Professor at the Department of Thoracic, Head, and Neck Medical Oncology, at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, says more people die from lung cancer than from breast, prostate, and colon cancers combined. “This type of cancer can metastasize early and widely, leading to frequent late-stage diagnosis.”  Dr. Singhi explains, “There are different types of lung cancer, which we generally categorize into non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), which represents 85 percent of all cases of lung cancer, and small cell lung cancer (SCLC). NSCLC tends to spread more slowly than SCLC. However, both NSCLC and SCLC can be aggressive, with SCLC often being particularly fast-growing and prone to early spread/metastasis.”  Despite medical advancements in treatments beyond conventional chemotherapy, such as targeted therapies and immunotherapy, Dr. Singhi says many lung cancers eventually become resistant to treatment, requiring ongoing research into new solutions. What are clinical trials? Clinical trials are research studies that evaluate the safety...