Matching Patients with Therapy

Diagnostic scans may prove to be useful in correctly identifying treatments for lung cancer patients. Scans help locate mutations and growth of tumors. By locating the specific mutations, different drugs can be prescribed that will be the most effective. "Given the fact that the cost of these drugs is exceedingly high ... I think we have to use them in selective subtypes, the ones most likely to respond. If you can select out the right subtype, that is an important finding, and an important cost savings as well" reports one doctor to Reuters. Doctors examined the specific mutation EGFR, known as the epidermal growth factor receptor. Patients that had the mutation were more likely to react positively to certain drugs. For other patients without his mutation, chemotherapy was proved to be more effective. Knowing this information can help lung cancer patients avoid expensive drugs that may not help their disease or harsh chemotherapy treatments that could have been avoided.