Adjuvant treatment of early stage non-small-cell lung cancer

Cure rates for non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) remain low and the prognosis for patients with even stage IA disease is poor. Complete surgical resection is still the first-line treatment for NSCLC, but many investigators are studying the benefit of postoperative adjuvant chemotherapy as a means of destroying residual tumor and micrometastasis. However, given the high recurrence rate and the trauma of surgery, consideration of drug toxicity and the patient's quality of life is important. Uracil and tegafur (UFT) is a tolerable and active drug in NSCLC that, as a prodrug and biochemical modulator, provides extended tumor exposure to 5-fluorouracil (5-FU). Early evidence from studies with UFT described here indicate that it may be a safe and effective alternative to cisplatin (Platinol)-based therapy for the postoperative adjuvant chemotherapy of early stage NSCLC. Further results are awaited.