[Preoperative induction therapy in non-small cell lung cancer]

The clinical significance of preoperative induction therapy for non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) is reviewed. As the survival rate in locally advanced NSCLC patients remains poor, preoperative therapy has been attempted in order to improve survival. Whereas some prospective phase II and phase III studies have demonstrated that preoperative cisplatin-based chemotherapy with or without concurrent radiation may improve the prognosis, the efficacy has not been established. Recently, some new chemotherapeutic agents such as paclitaxel and gemcitabine have been introduced, and it has been suggested that preoperative therapy using these new drugs may be more effective. To establish effective preoperative therapy regimens, more sophisticated, prospective, randomized studies in sufficient numbers of homogenous populations such as mediastinoscopy-proven stage IIIA, T1-2N2 patients should be conducted.