Paclitaxel and Carboplatin With Thoracic Radiation: Locally Advanced Non–Small-Cell Lung Cancer

Combined chemotherapy and radiation therapy have started to replace the traditional local approach of thoracic radiotherapy alone for unresectable stage III non–small-cell lung cancer. By itself, thoracic radiotherapy provides local control and effective palliation of symptoms, but has a minimal effect on survival.[1-3] Novel schemes of radiation such as hyperfractionated radiation[4] and continuous hyperfractionated accelerated radiotherapy[5,6] have been developed and tested. Saunders et al[6] demonstrated the superiority of the continuous hyperfractionated accelerated radiotherapy regimen (57.6 Gy in 36 fractions over 12 continuous days) over conventional radiotherapy in the treatment of patients with non–small-cell lung cancer, but at the expense of substantial esophagitis upon completion of treatment.