In the modern world, respiratory system cancer is more common than other oncologic diseases. It includes laryngeal cancer, bronchi and trachea cancer and lung cancer. All these diseases are usually diagnosed at late stages, which makes their treatment more difficult.  

There are two main types of lung cancer – small-cell lung cancer and non-small cells lung cancer. Small-cell lung cancer represents about 80% of all cases of lung cancer. 

Non-small cell lung cancer includes: 
1. Squamous cell carcinoma – the most wide-spread type of lung cancer. Itisformedincellsofairwaytissues.  
2. Adenocarcinomaor glandular cancer. Itappearsinglandulartissues.
3. Largecell  cancer. This type of lung cancer got its name because of large round cells, which are easily found by means of a microscope. Itiscalledsometimes undifferentiated carcinoma.

Less common type of lung cancer, mesothelioma, is formed on the lung’s surface.

Surgical resection of a lung or of its part can be chosen as the most acceptable method, especially if cancer has been revealed at an early stage and has not touched other body organs. Four types of surgeries are used for large cell lung cancer:

• Resection. This surgery resects a small part of lung containing the tumor. This procedure is called wedge resection, if a small triangular piece of tissue is resected, or segmental resection, when the tissue piece is a little larger. Sometimes, a part of bronchi is resected. Lobectomy is resection of a lung lobe. Pneumonectomy is resection of the entire lung.  
• Chemotherapy includes the use of anti-cancer drugs for destruction of cancer cells in the body, or at least blocks division of malignant cells. Even after the surgery, some cells may remain, and chemotherapy can be added to the treatment plan. Chemotherapy is administered either in intravenous injections (IV) or by means of a catheter.  Somedrugsareadministeredinpills.
• Radiotherapy cures lung cancer in Israel by means of radiation and can be used before the surgery in order to reduce the tumor, or after the surgery, in order to destroy the remaining  cells. Sometimes it is used in combination with chemotherapy as the main treatment, instead of surgical intervention. Mainly, radiotherapy is made by a machine (external radiation) with beams aimed directly at the tumor. There is another form of radiotherapy (internal radiation), in which a small capsule of radioactive substance is implanted into the tumor or near it.
• Laser therapy uses high-precision laser beams for killing cancer cells.

• Photodynamic therapy (PDT) is a modern lung cancer treatment, which includes use of laser. Special chemical preparations are being inserted into the blood circulation system. This chemical substance is distributed in the cells of the entire body and absorbed by them. Chemical substances quickly leave normal cells, but remain for a long time in cancer cells. Laser directed at the tumor activates chemical preparations, which later kill the cancer cells. It can be used in order to ease such lung cancer symptoms as bleeding, or for opening of respiratory tracts. It is also an effective way to treat very small cancer tumors which cannot be properly cured by more traditional methods.

A new effective treatment of lung cancer in Israel is called target therapy. As distinct from the traditional chemotherapy, biological preparations prevent growth of malignant cells and destroy them, not touching normal cells and blocking the tumor’s growth. Target therapy has considerably less side effects. At present, target therapy is used first of all for lung cancer of 3 and 4 stages, which has not responded  to other types of treatment.  

In Israeli clinics, radiotherapy, surgical treatment and chemotherapy are used for treatment of all types of respiratory system cancer. Radiotherapy in many cases comes before the surgery. In case of timely diagnostics of the disease, combination of radiotherapy and chemotherapy enable avoiding operation. For treatment of laryngeal cancer, Israeli doctors actively use target therapy by Cetuximab, which stops growth of the malignant tumor.   

In majority of cases, oncologic diseases of respiratory system require using surgical methods. For treatment of early stage laryngeal cancer, endoscopic methods can be used, when surface tumors are seared by laser, or a part of larynx is excised. The same method is used for curing lung cancer: a cancer surgeon resects the damaged area, adjacent lymph nodes and metastases. To complete the treatment, the patient undergoes radiotherapy and chemotherapy.

Israeli oncologists successfully cure respiratory system cancer at any stage, using innovative methods of treatment of this oncologic disease.