Treatment of small cell lung cancer in the elderly.

Content Provider	Semantic Scholar
Author	Rossi, Antonio Maione, Paolo Colantuoni, Giuseppe Guerriero, Ciro Ferrara, Carmine Gaizo, Filomena Del Nicolella, Dario Gridelli, Cesare
Copyright Year	2005
Abstract	Small cell lung cancer (SCLC) accounts for approximately 20% of lung carcinomas. Chemotherapy is the cornerstone of treatment for SCLC. In limited disease, the median survival time is about 12-16 months, with a 4%-5% long-term survival rate; in extensive disease the median survival time is 7-11 months. More than 50% of lung cancer patients are diagnosed when they are over the age of 65, and about 30% are over 70. Elderly patients tolerate chemotherapy poorly compared with their younger counterparts, because of age-related progressive reductions in organ function and comorbidities. The standard therapy for limited disease is combined chemoradiotherapy, followed by prophylactic brain irradiation for patients achieving complete responses. In the elderly, the addition of radiotherapy to chemotherapy must be carefully evaluated, considering the slight survival benefit and potential for substantial toxicity incurred with this treatment. The best approach is to design clinical trials that specifically include geriatric assessment to develop active and well-tolerated chemotherapy regimens for elderly SCLC patients. Survival improvement for SCLC patients requires a better understanding of tumor biology and the subsequent development of novel therapeutic strategies. Several targeted agents have been introduced into clinical trials in SCLC, but a minority of these new agents offers a promise of improved outcomes, and negative results are reported more commonly than positive ones. This review focuses on the main issues in the treatment of elderly SCLC patients.
Starting Page	399
Ending Page	411
Page Count	13
File Format	PDF HTM / HTML
Alternate Webpage(s)	http://theoncologist.alphamedpress.org/content/10/6/399.full.pdf
PubMed reference number	15967834v1
Volume Number	10
Issue Number	6
Journal	The oncologist
Language	English
Access Restriction	Open
Subject Keyword	Abbreviations Adverse reaction to drug Antigens, CD30 Base Excision Repair CHGA wt Allele Carboplatin Chemoradiotherapy Chemotherapy Chest Cisplatin Doxorubicin Eighty Nine Erectile dysfunction Etoposide Filgrastim Lung diseases MYELOPROLIFERATIVE SYNDROME, TRANSIENT Neoplasms Non-Small Cell Lung Carcinoma Patients Peas - dietary Small cell carcinoma of lung Sodium Structure of parenchyma of lung Tapazole Therapeutic radiology procedure Thoracic Outlet Syndrome Tumor Biology Vincristine Widespread Disease cisplatin/etoposide protocol irinotecan research grants
Content Type	Text
Resource Type	Article