After you finish treatment for lung cancer, you’ll probably be eager to know how well it worked. If all goes well, your doctor can give you the good news that you’re in remission. This means that the tumor is shrinking and your symptoms and signs of cancer are disappearing. Although remission isn’t necessarily the end of the road, it is an important milestone in lung cancer treatment and can mean good things for your overall outcome.

No matter where you are in your treatment journey, you might have questions about what being in remission really means. This article will go over things you’ll want to keep in mind about lung cancer remission.

If you have concerns about your own chances of remission, reach out to your oncologist (cancer specialist). They can explain the best ways to eliminate lung cancer cells and help you stay in remission longer.

1. Remission Can Be Complete or Partial

Going into remission is a sign that your cancer is responding well to treatment. Doctors can classify remission as being either complete or partial.

Complete remission occurs when all of the cancer cells have been destroyed, meaning imaging tests will all show up as negative for cancer. With complete remission, your symptoms of lung cancer should also go away completely.

Partial remission, on the other hand, means that your tumor is at least 50 percent smaller after treatment than it was before treatment. If you are in partial remission, imaging tests will still be positive for cancer.

Partial remission is still good news, as this means your cancer is responding to treatment. Your oncologist will let you know what the next steps are and what further treatment options may help you go into complete remission.

2. Remission May Not Last Long

Lung cancer can be treated with therapies like radiation therapy and chemotherapy — which have broad effects on the body — or more specific drugs like targeted therapies. All lung cancer treatments aim to increase the length of time you can live without your cancer getting worse. This is known as “progression-free survival” and is often used in clinical trials to measure how well a particular lung cancer treatment is working. The longer your remission period, the longer your progression-free survival.

Previous studies have looked at how well people with lung cancer respond to treatment with different therapies. One study found that people with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) — the most common type of lung cancer — treated with a targeted therapy drug had a progression-free survival of about 11 months. This shows that many people with lung cancer may not stay in remission for a full year.

3. Not Everyone Will Go Into Remission

Although modern treatments for lung cancer can increase progression-free survival, many people don’t go into remission following treatment. One 2021 study showed that people with non-small cell lung adenocarcinoma who underwent targeted treatment had a median progression-free survival of 18.9 months. This means that 50 percent of those who underwent treatment went at least 18.9 months before having any tumor progression. For people with small cell lung cancer (SCLC), treatment might also not lead to remission.

The chance that you’ll respond to treatment and go into remission depends on factors like how advanced your cancer is at the time you’re diagnosed. Early-stage disease has a better chance of remission than lung cancer that has metastasized (spread to other parts of the body). Your oncologist can help you better understand whether your cancer has spread to other parts of the body and how it may affect your prognosis.

4. Remission Is Not the Same as a Cure

If you manage to achieve complete remission after treatment, your health care provider may tell you that you’re “cancer-free”. However, even though the tumor may be entirely gone, this is not the same as being cured. When you’re cured of your cancer, doctors predict that the tumor cells will never grow back. In contrast, lung cancer often grows back after a period of remission — also known as lung cancer recurrence.

If you go into long-term remission — meaning you remain cancer-free for five years or more — then your oncologist may consider you cured. If this happens, there is still a chance of your cancer returning.

Your doctor should prepare you for the possibility of lung cancer recurrence, and you should plan to check in with your cancer care team during regular follow-up visits. Over the next several years, your cancer care team will likely perform imaging tests and blood tests to look for cancer cells and confirm whether you’re still in remission.

5. You May Need Follow-Up Treatment

To lower the chance of lung cancer recurrence after treatment, your doctor may recommend additional treatment after your tumor is gone. This is called maintenance therapy and may be important to help you stay in remission longer.

If your tumor responds well to your original treatment, your doctor will let you know whether you may need maintenance therapy — and what type — based on your specific case. Although you may not be looking forward to additional rounds of treatment, maintenance therapy may be recommended to help you stay cancer-free.

6. You Can Help Yourself Stay in Remission

With so much uncertainty around how your cancer may respond to treatment, you may feel like your chances at remission are out of your control. Although the future may be uncertain, you shouldn’t feel hopeless — there may be things you can do to improve your chances of staying in remission longer.

Smoking is one of the main risk factors for lung cancer. However, even after cancer diagnosis, people with lung cancer who quit smoking are more likely to stay in remission and live longer lives.

Additionally, people who drink a lot of alcohol may be at a higher risk of having lung cancer. Reducing your alcohol consumption may prevent cancer cells from growing and help you have a longer remission period. If you’re a smoker or heavy drinker, it’s in your best interest to quit.

Other things that can improve your overall health, like eating a healthier diet or getting regular exercise, may also be beneficial to lung cancer survivors. While it’s not clear whether these things can actually help you stay in remission, you should do what you can to stay as healthy as possible. Depending on your lifestyle, your oncology provider may work with you to change certain behaviors so that you can have a better chance at a longer, healthier life.

Talk With Others Who Understand

On MyLungCancerTeam, the social support network for people with lung cancer and their loved ones, more than 12,000 members come together to ask questions, give advice, and share their stories with others who understand.

Do you have more questions about lung cancer remission? Share your insights in the comments below, or start a conversation by posting on your Activities page.