Singer Rita Lee, 75 years old, was hospitalized in São Paulo, at Albert Einstein Hospital, this Friday (2/24). In a post on Instagram, musician Roberto de Carvalho, Rita’s husband, stated that “like anyone who has gone through or goes through oncological treatment, hospitalizations for tests and evaluations may be necessary”.
The artist was diagnosed in 2021 with lung cancer, underwent immunotherapy and radiotherapy and, in April 2022, family members announced that she was cured. Until Friday night (2/24), the hospital had not released a bulletin with detailed information about Rita’s current state of health.
In general, oncologists avoid using the word cure – especially if the patient’s follow-up has not yet reached a certain time.
The term most used by specialists is remission, when no more cancerous cells are detected in imaging and laboratory tests, but there is no guarantee that the cancer is gone and will not return.
“There is often confusion around the terms remission and cure. To further complicate matters, remission can be partial or complete. The term indicates that the cancer is measurably improving, resulting in a decrease in the extent of the disease burden,” explains oncologist Adriana Barrichelo, a specialist in lung cancer at Hospital Sírio Libanês.
A cancer in remission, she said, means that tumors may be shrinking or disappearing, symptoms may be improving or going away, or there are improvements in particular aspects of the blood test suggesting a response.
Adriana teaches that partial remission happens when the cancer is responding to treatment, but has not yet disappeared. Already in the full version, there is no evidence of the tumor observable in any test method available. The term is only used after all the treatment planned by the oncologist is completed.
“Complete remission is not the same as cure. It indicates that there is no evidence of detectable disease at a given time. This implies that there is still a risk of recurrence. A cure, on the other hand, shows that the tumor has been eradicated and that, essentially, there is no chance of it returning in the patient”, says the doctor.
Differences
Oncologist Murilo Buso, from the Brasília Cancer Center – Cettro, explains that the term cure is used more frequently in cancers identified early, when the treatment is usually surgery with the intention of completely removing the tumor. In general, the doctor states that it is necessary to monitor the patient for at least five years before talking about a cure.
“The interval depends a lot on the disease, the biological profile and the staging. So, in some patients, the cancer is treated and it doesn’t come back in three years, the chance of being cured is very high, but the follow-up is done for five years”, says the specialist.
He adds that remission is a positive outcome and that, currently, the trend is to treat cancer as a chronic disease that can be controlled. According to him, the treatment can even lead to metastatic cancers to recur.
Lung cancer
Rita’s cancer was identified in a routine exam, in an early stage. According to the National Cancer Institute (Inca), about 85% of diagnosed cases are related to the consumption of tobacco derivatives.
Symptoms usually only appear in the most advanced cases, but some patients may show signs of cancer in the early stages of the tumor. The most common ones are:
- Persistent cough (in smokers, the usual rhythm is altered and attacks appear at unusual times);
- Bloody sputum;
- Chest pain (worse when coughing or taking a deep breath)
- Hoarseness;
- Worse shortness of breath;
- Loss of weight and appetite;
- Recurrent pneumonia or bronchitis;
- Fatigue, feeling tired or weak.
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