Chapter 17 - Lung cancer: Improving efficacy and reducing side effects

Abstract

Lung cancer ranks first among other cancers as the primary cause of cancer deaths annually. Lung cancer creates abnormalities in the modulating circuits that govern cellular proliferation as well homeostasis. The metamorphosis from a normal cell to a malignant cancerous phenotype is supposed to commence in multiple stages through a chain of genetic and epigenetic transformations leading to life-threatening cancer by clonal development. Reorganization of factors like genomic alterations and molecular pathology may provide a crucial breakthrough in early diagnosis and better therapy of lung cancer. To understand and design comprehensive and appropriate therapeutic strategies for treating lung cancer, it is necessary to consider molecular and genetic patterns as well as histological and clinical anomalies. Lung cancer is categorized into three main types: small cell lung cancer (SCLC), nonsmall cell lung cancer (NSCLC), and malignant pleural mesothelioma (MPM). In recent years, nanotechnology-based approaches have received great attention due to their many associated advantages to surmount the various pharmacological, biological, and physical barriers of the body that often resist successful treatment. In this chapter, we discuss the different types of lung cancers to understand the different factors responsible for the initiation and progression of disease. We also examine various nanotechnology-based approaches for improving therapeutic efficacy and overcoming toxicity-related issues.