UT Medical Center first in the South to use Cytalux, a drug that ‘lights up’ lung cancer cells [Video]

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — A hospital in East Tennessee is leading the way against one of the most common types of deadly cancer. The University of Tennessee Medical Center said lung cancer claims more lives in the state than any other cancer. 

In recent years, the Food and Drug Administration approved a drug that lights up cancer cells during ovarian and lung cancer surgeries. Now, it’s being used at UT Medical Center.

Cytalux is a drug that combines two molecules — folate and ICG. ICG lights up cancer cells and helps doctors find them. It’s given to patients through an infusion.

“The cancer itself will take up the folates,” said Dr. Sean Jordan, an associate professor of Thoracic Surgery. “And then the ICG is something that we use in surgery that we actually pick up with …