Annals of Oncology 10:S77-S82, 1999
© 1999 European Society for Medical Oncology
Reviews |
Chemotherapy of advanced non-small cell lung cancer
Department of Oncology and Radiotherapy, Medical University of Gdansk Poland
Correspondence to: Jacek Jassem, MD, PhD Dept. of Oncology and Radiotherapy, Medical University of Gdansk, 7 Debinki St., 80-211 Gdansk, Poland e-mail: jjassem{at}amedec.amg.gda.pl
Until recently the role of chemotherapy in NSCLC has generally been questioned. Major concerns included marginal activity, considerable toxicity and high cost of this treatment. There has, however, been increasing evidence from individual studies and meta-analyses that chemotherapy in advanced NSCLC is able to increase survival and improve quality of life. In the past few years a series of active drugs (paclitaxel, docetaxel, gemcitabine, vinorelbine, topotecan and irinotecan) with novel mechanisms of action and favourable toxicity profiles have been developed. These agents appear to hold the promise of added therapeutic benefit. In consequence, chemotherapy has currently been considered an important part of the standard treatment in selected patients with advanced NSCLC. Despite recent developments, treatment outcomes in advanced NSCLC remain far from satisfactory, and new effective means are desperately needed if more patients are to enjoy the arospects of long-term survival.
chemotherapy, non-small cell lung cancer