Treatment Information

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Lung Cancer treatment details. Chemotherapy, Biologic therapy.

Emory Winship Cancer Institute, Atlanta, GA, United States.

Survival: monthsCountry:United States
Toxiciy Grade:5City/State/Province:Atlanta, GA
Treatments:Chemotherapy, Biologic therapyHospital:Emory Winship Cancer Institute
Drugs:Journal:Link
Date:Jan 2008

Description:

Patients: This phase III study involved 850 patients with advanced non-small-cell lung cancer. Two-hundred twenty four of the patients (26%) were 70 years or older. For the elderly groups, the median age was 74, and the median age in the younger group was 59 years old.

Treatment: Patients were treated with the chemotherapy drugs carboplatin and paclitaxel. Bevacizumab, a biological therapy, was also given to about half of the patients in each age group.

Toxicity: In the elderly patients, 10 deaths occurred that were related to the treatment. Seven of them were in the group that received bevacizumab in addition to the chemotherapy drugs. These deaths were from infection, cardiac ischemia, gastrointestinal bleeding, haemoptysis, infection, febrile neutropenia, hematemesis (vomiting of blood), and cerebrovascular ischemia. Other toxicities included fatigue, neuropathy, and anorexia.

Results: The median overall survival was 12.1 months for patients treated with carboplatin and paclitaxel, and 11.3 months for patients also given bevacizumab.

Support: Some research funds were provided by Pfizer and Genentech, which developed and markets bevacizumab as Avastin™.

Correspondence: Suresh S. Ramalingam



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