Background: In patients with metastatic non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), second-line chemotherapy induces response rates of less than 20% and median survival times between 5 and 8 months.
Case report: In the case described here, a patient with metastatic NSCLC responded with complete remission of the primary tumor and the involved lymph nodes as well as partial remission of bone metastases to a second-line chemotherapy with docetaxel and carboplatin. Since April 2003 (33 months), no tumor progression has been observed. Until present, the patient received monthly infusions of pamidronic acid.
Conclusion: Our case report indicates that in certain patients with metastatic NSCLC who did not respond to first-line regimens, second-line chemotherapy can induce outstanding tumor response and significantly improve survival. It also indicates that the role of bisphosphonates in the treatment of NSCLC should be further investigated in large clinical trials.