Comparison of survival in patients with non-oat cell carcinoma of lung using various types of treatment modalities

Abstract

From 1967–1977, 560 patients with carcinoma of the lung were seen. Of these, 73 patients underwent lobectomy/pneumonectomy with/without postoperative radiation; 27 are alive today (Group A). Two hundred and seventy patients had distant metastasis when first seen, or it developed during treatment and so they were excluded from the study (Group B). One hundred ninety-seven patients were inoperable or unresectable intrathoracic unilateral (Group C) and treated with one of the following regimens: (1) High dose split course radiotherapy (RT) 3000 rad in 2 weeks followed by 2 weeks rest, then 3000 rad in 2 weeks (2150 ret). (2) Radiotherapy as in regimen #1 followed by combination chemotherapy. (3) Continuous RT 6000 rad in 6 weeks. (4) Radiotherapy as in regimen #3 followed by combination chemotherapy. (5) Combination chemotherapy alone. RT was administered by 60Cobalt unit. The survival percentages are discussed later. Chemotherapeutic agents consisted of 2 different drug regimens: vincristine + cyclophosphamide + adriamycin or cyclophosphamide + methotrexate + vincristine CCNU. The 5 month to 5 year survivals in Group C patients treated with two forms of RT techniques were comparable with RT + chemotherapy. Patients receiving chemotherapy alone had a shorter survival rate than those treated with RT alone. In July 1976 a new protocol was started for Stage III squamous cell carcinoma of the lung in which 22 patients received 5000 rad in 5 weeks and were randomized for immunotherapy to receive (a) Methanol Extract Residue (MER) every 4 weeks. (b) VAC (Vincristine) 1.4mg/m 2IV + adriamycin 50 mg/m 2IV + cyclophosphamide 500 mg/m 2IV every 4 weeks or (c) MER + VAC every 4 months. Median survivals for the different regimens were not statistically significant.