Rita Lee’s lung cancer had early diagnosis – 02/14/2023 – Health

A new photo of Rita Lee, 75, which went viral on social media this Tuesday (14), inspired tributes from celebrities and reignited fans’ curiosity about the singer, who lives in reclusion on a farm and recently underwent oncological treatment that is still inaccessible to her. SUS (Unified Health System) patients.

The artist received the diagnosis of lung cancer in May 2021, after routine examinations. At the time, the doctors found that it was a malignant tumor located in the left lung, and the treatment adopted was a combination of radiotherapy and immunotherapy. Less than a year later, in April 2022, the family announced the cancer’s remission.

According to doctors and researchers, the singer’s case differs from what usually occurs in Brazil in two respects: it was diagnosed in a routine exam and treated with immunotherapy. Rita Lee was treated at Hospital Israelita Albert Einstein, and immunotherapy is still not found on a large scale in the public service.

“In supplementary health, lung cancer treatment in Brazil is as good as that offered in developed countries, but when we go to the SUS, the gap can reach 20 years, because patients do not have access to molecular diagnosis [que especifica o subtipo do câncer] and access to targeted therapy and immunotherapy is limited to some institutions”, says Carlos Gil Ferreira, president of SBOC (Brazilian Society of Clinical Oncology).

When cancer is diagnosed early, the standard treatment is surgery, which may or may not be combined with radiotherapy or chemotherapy. In more advanced cases, however, there is evidence that personalized therapies can be added and contribute to treatment.

“They are targeted therapies for each type of tumor. Unlike chemotherapy, which attacks all cells that reproduce quickly, these modalities identify and attack only malignant cells”, explains Marcos Nunes, manager of the oncology sector at Hospital Leforte Morumbi.

In January, Carlos Gil Ferreira and other oncologists published a study on differences in treatment provision. According to the survey, while the estimated expenditure to provide the most modern options for combating advanced lung cancer exceeds BRL 729,000 per patient, the SUS has a budget of BRL 8,000. Thus, it would be necessary to invest around BRL 13 billion per year to change the situation in the public network.

“We need to work together so that this gap is reduced. This is a big challenge for the new management of the Ministry of Health, for the SBOC and for the other actors involved with lung cancer”, says Ferreira.

Diagnosis and treatment of lung cancer

According to Inca (National Cancer Institute), lung cancer was responsible for 28,620 deaths in the country in 2020. This year, the estimate is that 18,020 new cases will be diagnosed in men, and 14,540 in women.

It is the third most common type of cancer in males (7.5% of occurrences), behind only prostate cancer (30%) and colon and rectum cancer (9.2%). Among women, it is the fourth most common type of neoplasm (6% of cases). In first place is breast cancer (30.1%), followed by colon and rectum (9.7%) and cervix (7%).

“It is a cancer with a high mortality rate, because most of the time the diagnosis is made late”, says Nunes.

Generally, the patient only shows symptoms of the disease when it is in an advanced stage, and it is common to confuse them with problems that affect smokers. Smoking and passive exposure to tobacco are the main risk factors for developing lung cancer.

“There are 25 to 30 subtypes of lung cancer. Of these, 80% to 85% are directly related to tobacco”, says Ferreira.

Symptoms

The most common signs and symptoms of lung cancer are a persistent cough, bloody sputum, chest pain, hoarseness, worsening shortness of breath, loss of weight and appetite, and recurrent pneumonia or bronchitis, as well as tiredness and weakness. In smokers, another indication is the change in the usual rhythm of coughing, with attacks at unusual times.

“About 75% of cases are diagnosed in locally advanced stages, when the disease has already reached a larger dimension, or as a metastatic disease. This limits the possibilities of treatment and worsens the prognosis”, says Gustavo Prado, coordinator of the scientific committee on cancer of the SBPT (Brazilian Society of Pneumology and Phthisiology).

Because of the high prevalence of the disease and the difficulty of early diagnosis, there is an understanding among physicians that it would be important to implement a periodic screening system, as exists for breast cancer and cervical cancer.

The recommendation would be to carry out an annual tomography exam with low dose of radiation for people over 50 years old with a history of cigarette consumption.

“We are mobilizing the medical community to equip decision makers in the Executive and Legislative branches for the elaboration of screening strategies for our population”, says Prado.

He recalls that government efforts to combat smoking are yielding results — lung cancer is the only type of neoplasm in which the probability of premature death (of people aged 30 to 69 years) should drop enough in the coming years to approach of the UN (United Nations) goal—, but reinforces that there are still a series of challenges to be overcome in relation to early diagnosis and universalization of treatment.

“Brazil is a model country in tobacco prevention and control, but there is still a lot to be resolved from the point of view of diagnosis and the patient’s journey”, adds the pulmonologist.