Stereotactic body radiotherapy with concurrent chemotherapy extends survival of patients with limited stage small cell lung cancer: a single-center prospective phase II study

We carried out a prospective phase II study of patients with limited stage small cell lung cancer (LS-SCLC) assigned to receive stereotactic body radiotherapy (SBRT) concurrently with cisplatin-based chemotherapeutic regimen with OS and PFS as the primary study endpoints. Patients with pathologically proven LS-SCLC received 4–6 cycles of cisplatin 75 mg/(m 2 /day) given intravenously on day 1 and etoposide 80 mg/(m 2 /day) given intravenously on days 1–5, both at 3 weekly intervals. SBRT at a dose of 4,000–4,500 cGy in ten fractions was given concurrently with chemotherapy starting on day 1. The Kaplan–Meier curve and life tables were used to describe survival data. Adverse events were evaluated according to the common terminology criteria for adverse events version of the radiation therapy oncology group (RTOG). Twenty-nine patients were included and followed up for a median duration of 19 (range 10–85) months. The median OS was 27 (95 % CI 20.2–33.8) months. The median PFS was 12 (95 % CI 4.2–19.8) months. No grade 4 adverse events were observed. Grade 3 adverse events occurred in only 5 (13.8 %, 5/29) patients. Neutropenia of any grade was observed in 6 (15 %, 6/29) patients, with grade 3 neutropenia only seen in one (3.4 %, 1/29) patient. The combination of chemotherapy and early concurrent SBRT could be a safe and effective treatment for LS-SCLC patients. Our study confirmed that SBRT with concurrent chemotherapy is another new treatment option for LS-SCLC patients.