Non-small-cell lung cancer: should unresectable stage III patients routinely receive high-dose radiation therapy?

作者：David G. Payne · 发表于：Journal of Clinical Oncology · 年份：1988 · DOI：10.1200/jco.1988.6.3.552 · 被引用次数：60 · 研究领域：Lung Cancer Diagnosis and Treatment、Effects of Radiation Exposure、Advanced Radiotherapy Techniques

Non-small-cell lung cancer patients who have unresectable mediastinal disease have a poor prognosis regardless of therapy administered. The various rationales for high-dose radiation therapy with curative intent are reviewed in the context of treatment results reported in the literature. The case for a dose-cure relationship in a clinically practical dose range must be considered unproven. On the other hand, the evidence for dose-response effects suggests that higher dosages could result in improved quality of life. There is a need to further refine reproducible criteria, both anatomic (such as mediastinal involvement) and non-anatomic (such as performance status), to permit more appropriate selection of patients for high-dose treatment. Studies involving less rather than more treatment with appropriate endpoints might be both ethical and appropriate.