LungBlog

An experimental test that snags lung cancer cells from a blood sample could give doctors real-time feedback on the most effective therapy, researchers reported Wednesday.

Changes in the number of circulating cancer cells correlated with the effectiveness of a patient’s treatment, according to the report in the New England Journal of Medicine. Currently, doctors take an educated guess at what treatment would work best, and then wait two to three months to perform a CT scan to see whether any tumors remain, researchers said. Doctors have many drugs and drug combinations to chose from.