Combined modality therapy for small cell lung cancer patient with limited stage disease

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the efficacy of combined modality therapy for small cell lung cancer (SCLC) patient with limited stage disease (LD). METHODS: The data of 122 SCLC patients with limited stage disease treated by surgery combined with chemotherapy and radiotherapy were analysed retrospectively. RESULTS: The median survival time (MST) of the 122 patients was 38 months, the 1-, 3-, 5-year survival rate was 83.6%, 50.0% and 38.0%, respectively. If stratified the patients by TNM stage, the MST of stage I was not reached yet, it was 52 months for stage II and 22 months for stage III (P = 0.001); the 5-year survival rate was 57.1%, 43.1% and 28.3%, respectively. For stage III, the MST and 5-year survival rate was 40 months and 45.3% for the patients who received postoperative chemoradiotherapy, and only 20 months and 26.1% for those who were treated with postoperative chemotherapy alone (P = 0.071). CONCLUSION: Combined modality therapy can improve the survival of small cell lung cancer patient with limited stage disease, and TNM stage is still a significant prognostic factor.