Background: Although the concept of induction therapy followed by surgical resection for locally advanced non-small cell lung cancer (LA-NSCLC) has found general acceptance, the appropriate indications and the strategy for this treatment are still controversial.
Methods: From 2000 through 2008, 36 patients received concurrent chemoradiotherapy followed by surgery. We retrospectively reviewed these cases, analyzed the outcomes and examined the prognosis.
Results: The median radiation dose given was 60 Gy. Chemotherapy included a platinum agent in all cases; cisplatin-based chemotherapy was administered to 9 cases, and a carboplatin-based chemotherapy regimen was administered to 27. A complete resection was performed in 94% of the patients. Seventeen (47.2%) patients exhibited a complete pathological response, and downstaging was induced in 26 (72%) cases. The morbidity and 30-day mortality rates were 11.1 and 0%, respectively. The 5-year overall survival rate in the patients with complete resection (n = 33) was 83.3%.
Conclusions: Induction chemoradiotherapy followed by surgery for LA-NSCLC provided a favorable prognosis for selected patients. A complete pathological response was found in about half of cases. This strategy is feasible and was associated with low morbidity and high resectability rates, suggesting that it contributed to improving the treatment results.
Keywords: Induction chemotherapy; Locally advanced non-small cell lung cancer; Non-small cell lung cancer; Prognosis; Surgical resection.