Innovative Invasive Loco-Regional Techniques for the Treatment of Lung Cancer

Simple Summary Every year lung cancer takes the lives of many patients, making it the most common cause of cancer-related deaths. While surgery is the gold standard treatment for early-stage lung cancer, its share in treating more advanced disease stages is limited. Therefore, clinicians advise a multimodal treatment consisting of chemotherapy, radiotherapy and/or immunotherapy to treat advanced lung cancers. There has been a growing interest in loco-regional techniques as they are expected to have advantages over current therapies. In this article, we provide an overview of the established and promising innovative invasive loco-regional techniques ordered by their route of administration (endobronchial, endovascular and transthoracic route) and an overview of their implementation and effectiveness. Although the results of these techniques show improved local disease control and effect, there is a need for more clinical studies to guarantee their efficacy and safety before they can be used within the clinic. Surgical resection is still the standard treatment for early-stage lung cancer. A multimodal treatment consisting of chemotherapy, radiotherapy and/or immunotherapy is advised for more advanced disease stages (stages IIb, III and IV). The role of surgery in these stages is limited to very specific indications. Regional treatment techniques are being introduced at a high speed because of improved technology and their possible advantages over traditional surgery. This review includes an overview of established and promising innovative invasive loco-regional techniques stratified based on the route of administration, including endobronchial, endovascular and transthoracic routes, a discussion of the results for each method, and an overview of their implementation and effectiveness.

Automated summary

Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer-related deaths, and surgery is the preferred treatment for early-stage cancer. However, for more advanced stages, a multimodal treatment approach consisting of chemotherapy, radiotherapy, and/or immunotherapy is recommended. Loco-regional techniques have gained interest due to their potential advantages over current therapies. This article provides an overview of established and promising invasive loco-regional techniques categorized by route of administration (endobronchial, endovascular, and transthoracic), along with their implementation and effectiveness. Further clinical studies are needed to ensure the efficacy and safety of these techniques before they can be widely used.