Pancoast tumours
Pancoast tumours are cancers that start in the top part of the lung (the apex).
These cancers were named after an American doctor called Professor Henry Pancoast in 1932. They are also called superior pulmonary sulcus tumours.
Cancers in the top part of the lung are rare. Fewer than 5 in every 100 cases of lung cancer (5%) are Pancoast tumours.
A Pancoast tumour can spread into one or more structures in the top part of the chest, which include:
- the top ribs in the chest (the thoracic ribs)
- nerves in the top of the chest
- bundles of nerves close to the spinal cord that supply the arm and hand (the brachial plexus)
- blood vessels that supply blood to the arms
Types of Pancoast tumour
Most Pancoast tumours are a type called non small cell cancer and most commonly squamous cell cancer. Squamous cell cancers develop in the flat cells that cover the surface of your airways.
Symptoms
Because the cancer is at the top of the lungs, it might put pressure on or damage a group of nerves that runs from the upper chest into your neck and arms. The group of nerves is called the brachial plexus.
Pressure on the brachial plexus can cause several very specific symptoms:
- severe pain in the shoulder or the shoulder blade (scapula)
- pain in the arm and weakness of the hand on the affected side
- Horner's syndrome
Horner’s syndrome is the medical name for a group of symptoms. You get flushing on one side of the face and that side doesn’t sweat. The eye on the same side has a smaller (constricted) pupil with a drooping or weak eyelid.
Diagnosing Pancoast tumours
Pancoast tumours can be difficult to diagnose. This is because, in the early stages, they often don’t show up easily on x-ray. You might need a CT scan or MRI scan to help diagnose it.
The symptoms are unusual and this might lead your doctor to suspect other conditions before lung cancer.
Treatment
Treatment for a Pancoast tumour depends on the stage of the cancer, it's exact position in the lung and your general health. The stage means the size of the cancer and whether it has spread to other areas of the body.
Chemotherapy, radiotherapy and surgery
If you are fit enough to have surgery, you usually have a combination of chemotherapy and radiotherapy (chemoradiotherapy) first to shrink the cancer. This is called trimodality or combination treatment.
Surgery for Pancoast tumours is often difficult and needs to be carried out by a team of specialist surgeons at a specialist cancer hospital. The surgery involves removing the top two ribs or sometimes more.
Sometimes the surgeon also needs to remove a major artery behind the collar bone and replace it with an artificial tube (graft) to keep a good blood supply to the arm on the affected side. They might carry out the surgery through a cut in the back or the front of the chest.
Chemotherapy, radiotherapy and immunotherapy
If you can’t have surgery, you might have chemoradiotherapy (chemotherapy with radiotherapy).
You might then have immunotherapy after chemoradiotherapy. Immunotherapy uses our immune system to fight cancer. It works by helping the immune system recognise and attack cancer cells.
Radiotherapy or supportive care
If the cancer can't be removed with surgery or has spread to other areas of the body, you usually have radiotherapy. This treatment shrinks the cancer and reduces symptoms. You can also have other medicines or treatments to control symptoms.
After the radiotherapy your doctor might offer you a course of chemotherapy. If your cancer cells have receptors for particular proteins that make them sensitive to targeted cancer drugs your doctor might offer you treatment with a targeted cancer drug.
