Combined polychemotherapy in the treatment of primitive lung cancer of the "non-oat cell" type

Abstract

Forty-one patients (30 males, 11 females; mean age 49.7 years) with diagnosis of the "non-oat cell" type of lung cancer were studied. All patients were included in a randomized treatment design (regimens A and B) and completed six full cycles of polychemotherapy. Only 28 of the 41 patients proved evaluable. The performance status was 0-2 in 20 subjects (71.4%) and 3-4 in 8 (28.6%). The total number of patients achieving partial and complete responses was 20 (71.4%), of whom 14 (70%) received CDDP and the other 6 DDR. A progression of the disease was seen in 8 patients (28.6%), of whom 5 (62.5%) received DDR and the other 3 (37.5%) CDDP. An increase in body weight (3-8 kg) was observed in 15 patients (53.6%). Twenty-four of the 28 patients (85.7%) had a subjective feeling of well-being throughout the 6 cycles of chemotherapy. Nausea and vomiting and alopecia were the most frequent side-effects. The most important complications were paralytic ileus in 2 cases and a darkish manifestation in forearm and hand tissue due to vinblastine extravasation in another 2 cases. Haematological toxicity was found to be acceptable: leucopenia (less than 3.000) in 30 patients (73.2%); and thrombocytopenia (less than 100.000) in 12 patients (29.2%), which proved reversible. Some modalities relative to treatment schemes and the incorporation of additional agents are discussed.