Related Experiment Video
Updated: Feb 18, 2026

Endobronchial Ultrasound-guided Intratumoral Injection of Cisplatin for the Treatment of Isolated Mediastinal Recurrence of Lung Cancer
Published on: February 12, 2017
Treatment Approaches in 102 Elderly Patients With Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer
Sener Cihan1, Hatice Odabas2, Nuriye Yildirim Ozdemir3
1Department of Medical Oncology, Okmeydani Training and Research Hospital, 34100 Sisli, Istanbul, Turkey.
Background:
The life expectancy and presence of co-morbidities cause reservations in treatment decisions for elderly patients with cancer. In this study, we retrospectively evaluated 102 patients who are considered as middle-old aged (aged 75 - 84) by gerontologists.
Methods:
Medical records of patients were reviewed. One hundred and two patients with a diagnosis of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) whose follow-up ended with death between March 2006 and May 2013 were examined.
Results:
The median age at diagnosis was 77 (75 - 85) years. Thirty-three patients (67.6%) were over 80 years old. The number of patients with metastasis was 57 (55.8%). Forty-two (41.2%) patients had stage IIIA and IIIB disease. Fifteen of the metastatic patients (26.3%) were given chemotherapy, while 12 of the non-metastatic patients (26.6%) were given chemotherapy. Of the non-metastatic patients, 25 (55.6%) were treated with radiotherapy, and five (11.1%) were treated with chemotherapy. The median duration of follow-up was 4 (1-55) months. Progression-free survival (PFS) was 4 months in non-metastatic patients, and 3 months in metastatic patients. Overall survival (OS) was 4 months. OS rates for 1 and 2 years were 10% and 2%.
Conclusion:
Chemotherapy and radiotherapy may be administered even to patients of this age group. The beneficial effect of chemotherapy in patients with metastasis on OS is an important finding of our study.
Related Concept Videos
Targeted Cancer Therapies
There are several types of targeted therapies against...
Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease-V: Management
Smoking Cessation
Cancer Therapies
However, cancer treatments can pose several challenges, as therapies used to kill cancer cells are generally also toxic to normal cells. Moreover, cancer cells mutate rapidly and can develop resistance to chemical agents or radiation therapy. Besides, all types of cancer cells may not respond to the same therapy. Some cancer cells respond to one...
Treatment Resistant Cancers
Combination Therapies and Personalized Medicine
The combination of the drug acetazolamide and sulforaphane is a good example of combination therapy to treat cancer. The cells in the interior of a large tumor often die due to the hypoxic and...
COPD: Management Using Bronchodilators and Corticosteroids
