Adjuvant treatment of older patients with lung cancer

Although advances in the molecular biology of lung cancer have rapidly impacted management of patients with advanced stage non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), the principal treatment in the adjuvant setting of early stage NSCLC remains platinum-based chemotherapy regimens. The evidence available from clinical trials demonstrates a similar benefit of adjuvant chemotherapy in fit, older patients as well as younger patients. Observational studies suggest that adjuvant chemotherapy for older patients provides comparable survival benefit, along with increased toxicity. The lower use of chemotherapy in the older population also suggests that the selection of appropriate patients remains an important part of the decision process. Carboplatin therapy may be substituted for cisplatin in selected older patients, and different options exist for the second cytotoxic chemotherapy agent. As in all patients, and particularly in this vulnerable population receiving cytotoxic chemotherapy, supportive care is vital. Increasing enrollment of the older population in clinical trials will be important to improve the evidence for our decision-making in the future.