Based on the traditional theory of Chinese medicine and the treatment experience of lung cancer patients, we formulated an agent to benefit qi, nourish yin, and clear heat and detoxification. After animal experiments and preliminary clinical use, we developed an oral Chinese medicine granule, named Yi lung clearing granule, and observed and treated 195 cases of advanced primary lung cancer patients, and made a control comparison with 144 cases treated with chemotherapy drugs. or pathological examination and confirmed as patients with primary squamous, adenocarcinoma, squamous adenocarcinoma and undifferentiated carcinoma of the lung. A comprehensive physical examination and X-ray chest radiograph and B-mode ultrasonography were performed before treatment, and fiberoptic bronchoscopy and CT examination were performed in some patients. The patients were staged according to the “TNM Staging Criteria for Lung Cancer” established by the International Union Against Cancer in 1978. All patients in this group were stage III or IV primary lung cancer patients, most cases received treatment for the first time, and some cases were those who were ineffective after radiotherapy for more than 3 months or chemotherapy for more than 2 months, or those who had local recurrence after surgery. After hospitalization, the cases were randomly divided into the group of Yilong Qing Hua granules and chemotherapy group, and the cases that completed the course of treatment were analyzed. In this paper, there were 339 cases, including 195 cases in the lung-clearing granules group and 144 cases in the chemotherapy group. The two groups of patients were comparable in terms of age, gender, pathological typing and duration of disease. In the group of Yilong Qing Hua granules, each patient was given Yilong Qing Hua granules orally, 15 grams each time, 3 times a day, for 2 months, regardless of the pathological type or Chinese medicine type. Chemotherapy group: according to the pathological type of tumor, the plan was formulated and chosen according to the specific situation of each case, six weeks as a course of treatment. According to the situation, Chinese herbal tonics to harmonize the stomach and qi are given. The above two groups do not cross each other and adhere to one treatment method. The symptoms of cough, sputum, chest pain, shortness of breath and weakness in the group with lung-clearing granules improved significantly after treatment compared with the chemotherapy group, but there was no significant difference in hemoptysis between the two groups. Weight change: The number of weight gainers in the Yi lung Qing Hua granule group was significantly higher than that in the chemotherapy group. Changes in survival quality assessment: According to the Karnofsky activity status grading standard, there were 25 cases (12.8%) of decline in the lung-clearing pellet group and 83 cases (57.6%) in the chemotherapy group, with significant differences between the two grades (P < 0.01). Evaluation of recent efficacy: The lesions on X-ray chest films before and after treatment were compared according to the General Criteria for the Efficacy of Antitumor Drugs of the Changzhou Conference in December 1978. Table 1 shows that the efficacy of Yi lung clearing granules was significantly higher than that of the chemotherapy group (P < 0.001). Table 1 Comparison of the efficacy of X-ray chest film lesions between two groups Group Number of cases Partial remission cases (%) Stable cases (%) Worsening cases (%) Beneficial lung clearing pellet group 195 2 (1.0) 166 (85.1) 27 (13.8) Chemotherapy group 144 10 (6.90) 70 (48.6) 64 (44.4) Long-term efficacy observation: we observed their survival in some patients, who were first treated at Guang'anmen Hospital, had no previous chemotherapy or radiation therapy, and adhered to one treatment regimen. Their survival period was from the date of receiving treatment to the time of death or last follow-up. Among the 28 patients in the Yilong Qing Hua granule group, 6 survived for less than 1 year, 15 for more than 1 year, 4 for more than 2 years, and 3 for more than 3 years; 5 are still alive and 23 have died; the mean survival period of patients was 12.5 months, and the median survival period was 9.5 months. In the chemotherapy group, all 17 cases had died, 14 cases survived for less than 1 year, 3 cases survived for more than 1 year, and no one survived for more than 2 years; their mean survival was 7.5 months, and the median survival was 6.0 months. Observation of toxic and side effects: chemotherapy drugs in treatment had obvious gastrointestinal reactions, with the incidence of nausea 44.44%, vomiting 31.25% and loss of appetite 50.69%, while the incidence of each symptom in the group of lung-clearing granules was only 5.13%, 0 and 11.28%. In the chemotherapy group, a small number of patients had decreased hemoglobin, leukocytes and platelets, while only a very small number of patients had decreased hemoglobin in the group of lung clearing pellets. Discussion The deficiency of positive qi in advanced lung cancer is obvious, and the evil qi is also strong. We formulated the agent of benefiting qi and nourishing yin, clearing heat and detoxifying toxins - Yi lung Qing Hua granules. It is in line with the principle of treating tumors by supporting the righteousness and evil, and the clinical treatment results show that its therapeutic effect is positive. This is related to the fact that this formula contains not only drugs that benefit qi and nourish yin, but also drugs that enter the lung meridian to regulate lung phlegm and clear heat and detoxify tumor, which can improve inflammation and phlegm-damp obstruction of airways. We believe that these results are a reflection of the tumor-suppressing effect in clinical practice. The increase of serum carcinoembryonic antigen amount was slower in the patients in the Yilong Qing Hua granule group than in the chemotherapy group, and the change of blood sedimentation was more stable. In contrast, the blood sedimentation in the chemotherapy group was significantly accelerated, which probably reflected the tumor suppressive effect of Yilong Qing Hua granules, i.e., delaying tumor growth. The literature proves that when tissues become cancerous, the suppressed carcinoembryonic antigen gene is de-suppressed, which can increase and release carcinoembryonic antigen into the blood and body fluid. Not only does it have diagnostic significance, but the higher the serum carcinoembryonic antigen level, the shorter the survival period. The acceleration of blood sedimentation is likely to be caused by tissue necrosis and the entry of heterogeneous proteins into the blood of tumor patients, indicating a poor prognosis. The beneficial lung clearing granules can regulate the phagocytosis of advanced lung cancer patients. The phagocytosis rate and phagocytosis index of this group were significantly higher than those of the chemotherapy group, and the immunomodulatory effect of traditional Chinese medicine should be affirmed. Yi lung clearing granules have a certain effect on prolonging the survival of advanced stage patients, and this drug has no significant toxic effect at the current clinical dose. Clinical observation confirms that Yi lung Qing Hua granule is a safe and effective drug for the treatment of advanced primary lung cancer.