Long-Term Survival of Patients with Lung Cancer Treated by Traditional Korean Medicine Combined with Western Treatment: Report of Two Cases

• Published in: 대한한방내과학회지, 36(1) pp. 58 - 68
• Main Authors: 강지영, 김준영, 손창규, 조정효
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: 대한한방내과학회 01.03.2015
• Subjects: 한의학
• ISSN: 1226-9174

Objectives: To evaluate the long-term survival effects of traditional Korean medicine (TKM) on refractory metastatic lung cancer and small cell lung cancer (SCLC), which have historically poor survival rates. Methods: A retrospective study was conducted using the medical records of two patients in Daejeon University hospital. The first patient, with SCLC, was treated from January 2000 to December 2009 and the other, with metastatic pulmonary cancer from primary hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), was treated from September 2004 to February 2014. The patients were treated with herbal medicines at one-month intervals. During hospitalization, acupuncture and indirect moxibustion were performed concurrent with the administration of Western therapy. Treatment efficacy was assessed monthly using chest radiography, chest computed tomography, and laboratory examination data, and by measuring patient performance status. Results: Both patients exhibited a stable disease course for more than 9 years after the initial diagnosis of intractable lung cancer, suggesting that their disease status was controlled by TKM. Conclusions: We suggest that a combination of TKM with conventional Western therapy for refractory lung cancer patients is effective in controlling various symptoms related to lung cancer and improving quality of life, and may potentially prolong overall survival. KCI Citation Count: 2