Could Nebulisers Be Used in the Treatment of Lung Cancer?

Traditionally, nebulisers are indicated in the treatment of asthma and long-term respiratory problems such as Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD). They are normally used as a form of emergency treatment in hospitals, but may also rarely be used at home as part of long-term treatment. There exist different types of nebuliser, although the concept behind all types is that medication is converted into an aerosol, a mist, and inhaled directly into the lungs. Nebulisers rely on either compressed oxygen or ultrasonic power to atomise a solution of medication so that it becomes a fine mist. This mist is easily inhaled by patients. In recent years the use of nebulisers has declined since they tend to have been replaced in the treatment of asthma with inhalers combined with spacers.

Now, a study has suggested that nebulisers could also be useful in the treatment of lung cancer. The study was carried out by researchers at the University of Strathclyde, in Scotland, where lung cancer is one of the country's biggest killers. At the moment, the majority of lung cancer sufferers will normally be treated with intravenous drugs. This means that drugs reach the diseased lungs via the blood stream, as a opposed to taking the more direct route. However, this form of treatment via a drip does have negative side effects, particularly damage to the kidneys.

The doctors who undertook the study have concluded that providing the treatment via a nebuliser would allow the treatment to reach the lungs by the most direct route. This would negate side effects caused by the drugs affecting other parts of the body, as well as reducing waste of the drugs. That is to say that if the drugs are being sent directly to where they are needed, a smaller dose may be used. This suggests that nebuliser use may have the dual benefits of increasing the efficacy of the treatment whilst reducing the cost incurred by it.

The leader of the study stated that she hoped that treatment for lung cancer via nebuliser devices could help lung cancer patients to live longer. Cancer research charities point out that one of the main reasons for the high mortality rates associated with lung cancer is that drugs are ineffective in the later stages of the development of the disease. If the nebuliser treatment could delay the onset of the later stages of the disease, then mortality rates may even be improved.