Recent trend of lung cancer in Korea |
Jae Guk Lee, 1, Ho Cheol Kim, 1, Chang-Min Choi, 1,2 |
1Department of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, Asan Medical Center, University of Ulsan College of Medicine, Seoul, South Korea 2Department of Oncology, Asan Medical Center, University of Ulsan College of Medicine, Seoul, South Korea |
Correspondence:
Chang-Min Choi, Tel: 02-3010-5902, Fax: 02-3010-5902, Email: ccm@amc.seoul.kr |
Received: 17 November 2020 • Revised: 21 January 2021 • Accepted: 10 February 2021 |
Abstract |
Lung cancer is a leading cause of cancer-related death in Korea. Although the smoking rate has begun to decrease, the prevalence of lung cancer is still high. We reviewed recent trends of incidence, epidemiology, screening, diagnosis, and treatment of lung cancer in Korea by examining the national lung cancer registry data and recently published studies. Although approximately 40% of patients with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) were diagnosed as stage IV, the 5-year relative survival rate improved from 11.3% (1993‒1995) to 30.2% (2013‒2017), possibly due to advances in diagnosis and therapy. In addition, the national lung cancer screening program with low-dose computed tomography began in 2019 for lung cancer screening. Recently, molecular diagnosis has been widely used to identify genetic mutations in tissue specimens. Target therapy and immune checkpoint inhibitors have been successfully used, especially in advanced NSCLC. Further research on the optimal management of lung cancer is needed. |
Key Words:
Lung neoplasms, epidemiology, screening, treatment, Korea |
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