| Objective:Observation of the traditional Chinese medicines (TCM)"Device of Nourishing Qi and Eliminating Phlegm" therapy in patients of60years of age and above who are having non-small cell lung cancer at the last stage to figure out the impacts of the traditional medicines in preventing the development of tumors, improving major clinical symptoms in order to enhance the quality of life. The combination of the traditional Chinese medicines "device of Nourishing Qi and Eliminating" and chemotherapy can help reduce toxicity of the chemicals enhancing treatment effects. The therapy "Device of Nourishing Qi and Eliminating Phlegm" for the elderly having non-small cell lung cancer is an important and effective treatment that could contribute in enriching the clinical therapies for elderly patients having lung cancer at the last stage, improving clinical treatment effects on elderly having non-small cell lung cancer at the last stageMethod:Ninety elderly patients with non-small cell lung cancer of the last stage who cannot or do not wish to undergo a surgery, vascular obstruction, or radiotherapy, targeted therapy are sampled for the research. The targeted therapy was broken in three groups including treatment of TCM (group â… ), combination of treatment of TCM and chemotherapy (group â…¡), treatment of chemotherapy only (group â…¢). Each group involves30patients. Group â… receives treatment of traditional Chinese medicines "device of Nourishing Qi and Eliminating Phlegm" only. The ingredients include:Dangshen25g, Fuling25g, Gancao6g, Zhike15g, Tiandong15g, Maozhaocao30g, Pipayel5g, Zhebeimul5g, Xianhecaol5g, Shougong5g. Group â…¢:Platinum-based chemotherapy was used either TP, GP, DP and Almita single regimen. Group â…¡: the treatment of TCM is the same as that of group â… and chemotherapy is the same as that of group â…¢. The three groups all undergo two three-week treatment phases. The key indicators observed include (â… ) improvement of the major symptoms,(â…¡) quality of lives,(â…¢) side effects of the chemicals during treatment, and other indicators such as reduction of the tumor sizes, KSP average, CEA, body weight changes, etc.Results:The comparison of improvement of the major symptoms among the three groups: shows significant symptom reduction in group â… and group â…¡ (P<0.05). There is no clear reduction in the group â…¢ in comparison between before and after since the results are not significant (P>0.05). Group â… and Group â…¡ have remarkable improvement of the major symptoms and better than that of group â…¢, especially with the symptoms of coughing, sputum release, anhelation, tiredness, and eating less. The changes are statistically significant with (P<0.05). This proves that treatment of TCM clearly works well on improvement of the major symptoms.Comparison of before and after treatment tumor changes among the three groups:There is no absolute elimination of tumor in any groups. Nevertheless, proportion of effective treatment (reduction of tumor sizes), proportion of stable tumor without any changes are highest in the group â…¡ (40%and76.6%respectively). Proportion of effective treatment is higher in the group â…¢ (11cases accounting for36.6%) than that of the group â… (1case accounting for3.3%). Nevertheless, proportion of patients with unchanged tumor sizes remains the same in the group â…¢ (17cases accounting for56.7%), which is lower than that of the group â… (18cases accounting for60%). There tumor size changes are significant in all three groups (P<0.01). Apparently, combination of the TCM and chemotherapies has the most powerful impacts in tumor reduction. Traditional Chinese medicines only treatment helps prevent the tumor from getting larger.Comparison of quality of lives after treatment among three groups:after treatment, KPS average increases in all three groups, of those group â… and group â…¡ have clearer increase than group â…¢. The changes are significant in all three groups (P<0.05). This research, aside KPS average, employs a Functional Assessment of Cancer Threapy-Lung (FACT-L) to assess post-treatment changes in patients'quality of lives. The results show significant improvement in terms of physical situation, mental situation, functional situation, and other signs in the two group â… and group â…¡ (P<0.05). There are no significant changes in group â…¢ (P>0.05). This proves that TCM helps improve physical health and functions of the body so as improve emotional situation and abnormalities caused by lung cancers. Hence, it helps enhance the patients quality of lives. Comparison of side effects during treatment among three groups:there are decreases in numbers of platelets, leucocytes, erythrocytes, and hemoglobin, and the changes are significant in all three groups (P<0.001). Basically, there is no side effect of the serium system found in group â… , group â…¡ has the lower proportion of side effects than groupâ…¢. Side effects on the digestive system include vomiting, nausea, diarrhea, and liver functions are significantly different among three groups (P<0.05). Of those, no side effects observed in group â… , and group â…¡ has lower proportion of side effects than does group â…¢. This indicates that the Traditional Chinese medicines help reduce side effects of the chemotherapy.In group â…¡, comparison between before and after treatment shows significant decreases in CEA indicator(P<0.05). This is not the case for group â… and group â…¢ while (P>0.05). The result of significant decrease of CEA indicator in group â…¡ matches perfectly with the result of having highest proportion of patients with down-sized or undeveloped tumors in this group.Before treatment, there are no significant changes in average body weight in all three groups. After treatment, there is significant increase in average body weight of the patients of group â… and â…¡ (P<0.05). The average body weight of the patients of group â…¢ is significantly decreased (P<0.05).Conelusion:(1) The device of Nourishing Qi and Eliminating Phlegm therapy (drawn from treatment experiences) that could clearly improve major symptoms of elderly patients having non-small cell lung cancer, especially for the symptoms such as coughing, sputum release, bloody sputum, anhelation, tiredness, and eating less.(2)The device of Nourishing Qi and Eliminating Phlegm therapy (drawn from treatment experiences) inhibit (stabilize) the tumor development(3)The device of Nourishing Qi and Eliminating Phlegm therapy (drawn from treatment experiences) enhance the quality of lives of patients and improve the physical and functional status so as improves emotional situation and abnormalities caused by lung cancers, and increases the body weight. (4)The device of Nourishing Qi and Eliminating Phlegm therapy (drawn from treatment experiences) coupled with chemotherapy could enhance the treatment effects reducing the toxicity of the chemicals.(5) Therefore, it is clear that device of Nourishing Qi and Eliminating Phlegm therapy appears to be an important and effective therapy for elderly patients having non-small cell lung cancer at the last stage.
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