[Bevacizumab and lung cancer: eligible patients in daily practice]

Combining bevacizumab with platinum-based chemotherapy significantly improves survival for patients with advanced non-squamous non-small cell lung cancer. The objective of this study was to assess the proportion of patients who could receive this combined therapy.

This was a retrospective single centre analysis of patients treated between 2007 and 2008. Exclusion criteria for bevacizumab included: squamous cell carcinoma, contraindication to platinum-based chemotherapy, uncontrolled hypertension, haemoptysis superior to 2.5 mL, recent surgery, and/or tomodensitometric criteria after independent review by two radiologists (contact with a proximal vessel, tracheobronchial involvement, cavitation). Cardiovascular diseases and central tumour location were not systematically considered as contraindications.

Among 194 patients analysed, 21 (10.8%) to 35 (18%) patients were eligible for bevacizumab, whether or not cardiovascular diseases and central tumour location were considered as contraindications. The kappa coefficient was 0.49.

Even though the proportion of patients who can receive chemotherapy plus bevacizumab may vary according to the eligibility criteria chosen and the interpretation of the CT scan, it is unlikely to exceed 25% of patients in daily practice.