A study looking at the effect pemetrexed has on non small cell lung cancer cells

This study is using PET-CT scans to look at how a drug called pemetrexed affects non small cell lung cancer cells.

Doctors often use chemotherapy to treat non small cell lung cancer. Pemetrexed is one of the chemotherapy drugs they can use. You may have it at alongside other drugs called cisplatin or carboplatin. People taking part in this trial are having pemetrexed and cisplatin or carboplatin.

Researchers want to learn more about how pemetrexed affects cancer cells. In this study they are using scans called FLT PET-CT scans. A PET-CT scan combines a PET scan and a CT scan.

Before you have a PET scan, you have an injection of a very small amount of a radioactive drug. This is called a tracer. Cancer cells take up more of the radioactive tracer than normal tissue, which then shows up on the scan.

In this study, the researchers are using a tracer called FLT. The aim of the study is see if PET-CT scans can show differences in the amount of FLT that gets into cancer cells before and after you have pemetrexed.

You will not directly benefit from taking part in the study, but it may help doctors to find better ways of measuring how cancer responds to treatment.