[Possible role of autotransplantation in small cel bronchial carcinoma]

Autologous bone marrow transplantation (ABMT) performed with recent achievements plays yet no established role in the treatment of small cell lung cancer (SCLC). The majority of treatment results obtained so far do not clearly suggest a superiority of high-dose therapy with autologous transplantation over conventional polychemo/radiotherapy. It is unknown, whether or not a subgroup of patients with, e.g., "limited disease" and chemosensitive tumor may benefit from ABMT. Randomized trials will be necessary to clarify this question.