#LCSM Chat Topic 6/29: When Doctors Disagree

Increasingly, the care of lung cancer patients has become a multi-doctor, multi-disciplinary job.  Gone are the days (thankfully!) when a paternalistic doctor prescribed a treatment plan that was unquestioned by the patient.  The internet and ease of travel have allowed unprecedented access to information and to physicians.  As more treatment options and strategies become available for lung cancer patients, it is inevitable that they will be faced with differing opinions from their physicians with regard to how to personalize their care.  Examples are plentiful, such as decisions between surgery or radiation therapy… Read More

#LCSM Chat Topic 6/1: Community Grief: Dealing with our Cumulative Losses

There are many advantages to being an active participant in a cancer community: fellowship, access to information, advocacy and support, to name just a few. There is one major challenge, however, that comes along with this sense of community: some of our friends die. Whether in real life or online, strong connections are made with our fellow patients and caregivers. How do we cope with these seemingly unrelenting losses, and find the strength to go on? Please join us on Thursday, June 1, at 5 PM Pacific, 8 PM Eastern, as we… Read More

#LCSM Chat Topic 5/18: What’s PFS Got to Do with It?

For our chat on 5/18/17, starting at 8 PM Eastern, 5 PM Pacific, we’ll cover several key trial results and the potential implications of them.  While each has the potential to be practice changing, all three have the primary endpoint of progression-free survival (PFS) but, to our knowledge, don’t necessarily improve overall survival (OS).  It is interesting that the differences between the settings and trial designs have led many lung cancer experts to favor adoption of some of these results but not necessarily others. But what do patients and caregivers think of… Read More