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The closer you look, the more you may see
A lung cancer diagnosis can come out of nowhere. It can happen without warning. It may feel like you’re stuck in a whirlwind of information, but it's important to remember that your voice is your most powerful tool. Now is the time to speak up and ask your doctor for a clear view of your complete diagnosis before starting treatment.
Knowing more about your lung cancer from the start can help you and your doctor focus on a treatment that may be right for you.
Find out what may make your lung cancer diagnosis different
Be your own advocate and ask your doctor about all the ways you can look closer at your lung cancer. Knowing your lung cancer type, stage, and biomarker status from the start may help your doctor choose a treatment option for your specific cancer traits.
Download our Doctor Discussion Guide to help get the conversation started.
See what lung cancer advocacy experts say are the most important questions to ask your doctor in this short video.
Type
Non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) accounts for about 80%-85% of all lung cancer cases.
Small cell lung cancer accounts for about 10%-15% of lung cancer cases.
Stage
There are 5 stages of NSCLC (0, I, II, III, and IV). Stage IV is also called "metastatic." Your doctor will test your cancer cells to determine your stage and whether you need additional types of testing before choosing a treatment option.
Biomarker Status
A comprehensive biomarker test allows your doctor to take a closer look at the DNA in your lung cancer cells. This might reveal important information about what may be driving your cancer. Some biomarkers—such as PD-L1 levels and/or mutations like EGFR, ALK, and METex14—have associated targeted treatments, while others provide information about how well certain treatments may work for you.
Before starting on a treatment, ask your doctor about comprehensive biomarker testing.
ALK, anaplastic lymphoma kinase; EGFR, epidermal growth factor receptor; MET, mesenchymal-epithelial transition; METex14, MET exon 14 skipping; PD-L1, programmed death-ligand 1.
