Platinum-based chemotherapy regimens did not offer a statistically significant benefit in survival or overall tumour response compared with non-platinum-based regimens. However, platinum-based chemotherapy regimens did increase complete response rates, at the cost of higher adverse events including nausea and vomiting, anaemia and thrombocytopenia toxicity. These data suggest non-platinum chemotherapy regimens have a more advantageous risk-benefit profile. This systematic review highlights the lack of quality of life data in trials involving chemotherapy treatment for SCLC. With poor long-term survival associated with both treatment groups, the issue of the quality of the survival period takes on even more significance. It would be beneficial for future trials in this area to include a quality of life assessment.
plus best supportive care (OT+ BSC) versus best supportive care (BSC) alone using the EQ-5D assessment in a clinical trial in SCLC. Information from ongoing studies supports that a minimal important difference (MID) in lung cancer of 0.08 can be used to further interpret results obtained for EQ-5D Index. Methods: Data were analyzed from a randomized, open-label, multicenter trial in 141 SCLC patients receiving either OT+BSC or BSC alone where health status was assessed by patient self-report using the EQ-5D Index and the EQ-5D Visual Analogue Scale (VAS). EQ-5D is a questionnaire that covers multi-attribute health outcomes, including mobility, self-care, usual activity, pain/discomfort, and anxiety/depression, as an overall measurement of patient health status. The Index is scored on a scale from 0 (dead) to 1 (perfect health), and the VAS scores range from 0 (worst health) to 100 (best health). The EQ-5D measures were administered at baseline and at 3-week intervals at subsequent four visits. Change from baseline in EQ-5D Index and EQ-5D-VAS was assessed using a pooled analysis (change from baseline to averaged on-treatment assessments) and also considering only change from baseline to last evaluation. Rate of change in EQ-5D Index scores (rate at which symptoms improved or deteriorated) across treatment groups was analyzed using a mixed model to account for repeated measurements over the treatment course. Results: A significantly smaller decline in EQ-5D Index and VAS change scores were observed for the OT+BSC than BSC groups in both pooled and last evaluation analyses (Table ). The rate of change from baseline per 3-month interval for EQ-5D Index score was -0.05 (95% CI: -0.11, 0.02) for OT+BSC and -.20 (95% CI, -0.27, -0.12) for BSC, indicating a decline for both groups, but a significantly slower decline for OT+BSC.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.