Lung cancer and mesothelioma

Our service
Type of treatment available
Research and clinical trials
For patients
For clinicians
Sources for further information
Contact details
Meet the team

Our service

At Barts Cancer Centre, we provide state-of-the-art treatment for patients with all types of thoracic cancer, especially lung cancer and mesothelioma (a cancer affecting the lining of the lung).

Our team of internationally recognised experts has been instrumental in the use of new therapies. In addition to a comprehensive service for treating lung cancer, we offer a national advisory service and treatment expertise in malignant mesothelioma of the pleura and peritoneum, including surgical approaches to mesothelioma.

Lung cancer is the second most common cancer in the UK and we treat approximately 250 patients with lung cancer and 100 with mesothelioma (including about 10 patients with peritoneal mesothelioma) each year.

Type of treatment available

The treatments and equipment used at our centre are at the forefront of modern healthcare. As with all of our services at Barts Cancer Centre, treatments offered will depend on individual cases and the stage of cancer. This will be discussed in detail with every patient by one of our medical team once a diagnosis has been made.

We provide a range of treatments including surgery, Chemotherapy and radiotherapy. Surgery is usually the most common treatment for patients with lung cancer, and chemotherapy and radiotherapy are treatments for mesothelioma.

For many patients with lung cancer, surgery may be the most appropriate treatment. Surgery to remove lung cancer is a major operation and it will take a number of weeks to recover from the surgery.

Our team of specialist nurses will be on hand to answer any questions and to care for patients during their recovery time and throughout their outpatient appointments.

Chemotherapy may be offered to patients before or after surgery to help improve the treatment of the cancer.

Research and clinical trials

Barts has been at the forefront of medical discovery since it was founded nearly 900 years ago and today, our research continues to be recognised for its originality, significance and rigour. The results of the work we do here means we are constantly improving the treatments and care we can offer patients.

We participate in clinical trials for patients with malignant mesothelioma and lung cancer. We are active members of the London Lung Cancer Group Clinical Trials Network as well as the National Cancer Research Institute Clinical Trials Programme. We also offer state-of-the-art trials of new therapies for mesothelioma and lung cancer.

We also have a laboratory research programme centred on malignant mesothelioma and participate in clinical trials in new targeted anti-cancer agents for lung cancer, designed to kill the cancer while causing as few side effects as possible.

For more information about these trials, please speak to your consultant or nurse specialist.

For patients

We aim to treat all patients as individuals and provide care from the point of diagnosis and throughout the course of their illness.

Symptom control
Many patients with lung cancer and mesothelioma benefit from the additional symptom control advice of our palliative care team. Our team will focus on symptoms such as cough, breathlessness, poor appetite or weakness, and using medicines or other treatment to control these. We aim to improve the quality of life and we will work with a team closer to the patient’s home to ensure that we can achieve the best possible control over the symptoms.

For clinicians

We consistently achieve national access targets for patients with suspected cancer and for treatment following diagnosis. Referral criteria and forms are all available on our website, please click here for referral forms.