Abstract
Limited data exist concerning the long-term (≥5 year) survival rates of patients with stage IIIB and IV non-small cell lung carcinoma (NSCLC) receiving chemotherapy. We aimed to determine the long-term results of cisplatin plus third-generation (vinorelbine or gemcitabine) cytotoxic chemotherapy in patients with locally advanced and advanced NSCLC. The study included 141 patients, and all patients were followed up from the time of diagnosis until death. The median age of the patients was 59.1±9.9 years. The male-to-female ratio was 124/17; 62.4% of the patients had stage IIIB and 37.6% had stage IV NSCLC. Squamous cell carcinoma, adenocarcinoma and undifferentiated NSCLC subtypes accounted for 69.5, 17.7 and 12.7% of the cases, respectively. The overall response rate was 32.6% and the median survival time was 12.3 months (95% CI, 10.2–14.5). The median survival times for stages IIIB and IV were 12.6±1.4 and 11.9±1.7 months, respectively. The 1-, 2-, 3- and 5-year survival rates were 33, 7.5, 4.3 and 2.8%, respectively. In conclusion, cisplatin-based new-generation cytotoxic agents for combined modality therapy offer an increased hope of long-term survival for patients with locally advanced and advanced NSCLC.
Highlights
Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer-related death in the world, and non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) accounts for 80-85% of lung cancer cases
It was observed that 62.4% of the patients had stage IIIB disease and 37.6% of patients had stage IV disease
69.6% of patients had squamous cell carcinoma, 17.7% of patients had adenocarcinoma and 12.7% of patients were classified as having undifferentiated NSCLC
Summary
Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer-related death in the world, and non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) accounts for 80-85% of lung cancer cases. Patients with early-stage NSCLC have relatively high long-term survival rates after surgical resection, but a substantial majority of patients, ~80%, present in advanced or metastatic stages. Third-generation agents such as vinorelbine, taxanes and gemcitabine have been introduced for the treatment of NSCLC [1]. Combination of one or more of these agents with a platinum compound has resulted in high response rates and prolonged overall survival. Many studies have examined short-term survival rates in patients receiving such treatment, yet current evidence regarding long-term survival in advanced-stage NSCLC, in stages IIIB and IV, is limited. This study aimed to determine the long-term results of cisplatin plus third-generation (vinorelbine or gemcitabine) cytotoxic chemotherapy in patients with locally advanced and advanced NSCLC
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