There are many causes of asthma, and the effect of treatment varies depending on the cause, so it cannot be generalized. Some causes of shortness of breath are better treated, such as pneumothorax, which may be completely cured or even not recurred after treatment with closed chest drainage and oxygen, such as bronchial asthma, which can be controlled by regular inhalation medication. On the contrary, some other causes of asthma are less effective, such as asthma caused by advanced lung cancer, which may not be effective even with aggressive treatment, such as asthma caused by idiopathic interstitial lung fibrosis, where only a few drugs such as pirfenidone and nidanib have the potential to delay the progression of the disease, but even with aggressive treatment, most patients will die within a few years.