# Coexisting cancer regimes: Transformations of breast and lung cancer in the United Kingdom

## TL;DR

This paper examines how breast and lung cancer treatment approaches coexist in the UK, highlighting differences in innovation and strategies.

## Contribution

The paper introduces the concept of coexisting cancer regimes through qualitative insights from UK medical professionals.

## Key findings

- Breast cancer treatment benefits from screening and targeted therapies for most patients.
- Lung cancer treatment relies on targeted therapies for only a few patients, prompting a push for surgery and screening.
- Two distinct cancer regimes coexist in the UK, each with different treatment priorities.

## Abstract

Using in-depth interviews with medical professionals working in the UK, I explore the coexistence of two different cancer regimes in which the different innovations for breast and lung cancer can be located. Breast cancer treatment has seen a protracted series of significant innovations in the context of an emphasis on screening that coexists with a segmentation in subtypes that has allowed targeted therapies for most patients. Lung cancer has also seen the introduction of targeted therapies; however, these can only be used for small groups of patients. Consequently, some interviewees working on lung cancer have expressed a stronger focus on increasing the number of patients undergoing surgery, as well as introducing screening also for lung cancer. As a result, a cancer regime based on the promises of targeted therapies coexists with a more traditional approach that focuses on diagnosing and treating cancers in their early stages.