Beneficial Effect of Pulmonary Rehabilitation in Lung Cancer Patients Receiving Radiation Therapy

Roles of the radiation therapy in lung cancer are as followings; 1) to treat the lung caner stage 1 \~2 patients, who are inadequate for operation due to declined lung function, 2) to treat the locally advanced and inoperable stage 3 patients with concurrent chemotherapy, and 3) to palliatively treat the stage 4 patient. However, it is also possible that radiation therapy worsens the general weakness and lung function, although the degree of deterioration was generally less than lung resection. Therefore, it is crucial for clinicians to maintain and support for exercise capacity and quality of life of lung cancer patients after radiation therapy. The effect and safety of pulmonary rehabilitation is well-proven in various diseases. Investigators presented a retrospective study about the effect of pulmonary rehabilitation in patients receiving radiation therapy, which showed less decreased lung function, less radiation related pneumonitis, and decreased mortality. Investigators will perform this study to clearly prove the effect of pulmonary rehabilitation in lung cancer patients receiving radiation therapy.