Treatment of Lung Cancer Based on Theory of "Generation of Five Elements" of Lung， Spleen， and Kidney / 中国实验方剂学杂志

ABSTRACT

Primary lung cancer， as one of the most commonly diagnosed malignancies and the top leading cause of cancer death worldwide， has seriously endangered human life. In China， due to regional differences， although the impact of lung cancer on different regions is different， it still has the highest mortality among malignant tumors. Western medicine often has certain limitations in the treatment of lung cancer. At present， the combination of western medicine and traditional Chinese medicine （TCM） or the direct application of TCM has become an inevitable trend in the treatment of lung cancer. TCM treatment is guided by the holistic view， which includes the view of integration of the five internal organs and the integration of the body and spirit. Therefore， the treatment of lung cancer in TCM emphasizes that although the disease is located in one organ， the whole body should be treated， which corresponds to the theory of the view of integration of the five internal organs. In addition to the lung in the treatment of lung cancer， the spleen and kidney should also be treated. The lung， spleen， and kidney correspond to metal， earth， and water， respectively on the five elements. According to the generation relationship of the five elements， since earth generates metal and metal generates water， earth is the mother of metal and water is the child of metal. Therefore， benefiting fire （kidney） can replenish earth. Tonifying the mother and son of the lung can treat lung diseases， reflecting mutual generation and transformation and ceaseless generation and transformation. Long-term consumption of Qi by lung cancer can affect mother-organ. In the context of disorder of child-organ affecting mother-organ， mother-organ should be tonified in the face of deficiency. The treatment principle of banking up earth to generate metal should be followed to reinforce healthy Qi and treat the root. Effulgent earth can promote the generation of metal and the syndrome of lung deficiency can be resolve. The lung and kidney deficiency is an important factor in the incidence of lung cancer. Yin deficiency for a long time can hinder the generation of water by metal， resulting in failure of water in moistening metal， so both mother organ and child organ should be tonified. The treatment principle of mutual generation between metal and water should be employed to moisten the kidney and lung， thereby facilitating the vigorous ventilation and descending of the lung. The spleen is the mother organ of the lung， and the kidney is the child organ of the lung. Long-term lung cancer causes the deficiency of the mother and child organs， so the treatment principle of replenishing fire to nourish earth should be adopted to benefit the kidney and tonify the spleen. Therefore， innate basis and acquired foundation are both filled， and the lung can be regulated properly. When the lung， spleen， and kidney are harmonized， the generation and transformation of Qi and blood are active， and the Yin and Yang of Qi and blood are balanced， so the self-rehabilitation ability of the body is ensured， and the treatment of lung cancer will achieve a good curative effect. According to the holistic view of TCM， the whole body should be regulated to treat lung cancer. The lung， spleen， and kidney are all treated in the treatment of lung cancer. With the lung， spleen， and kidney as the central axis， the treatment principles of banking up earth to generate metal， replenishing fire to nourish earth， and mutual generation between metal and water should be followed in the treatment of lung cancer， and a good therapeutic effect can be achieved.