title: Prospective study of adjuvant chemotherapy for pulmonary large cell neuroendocrine carcinoma.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Patients with pulmonary large cell neuroendocrine carcinoma (LCNEC) have a very poor prognosis, but the benefit of adjuvant chemotherapy for these patients has not been established. We performed a prospective analysis of adjuvant chemotherapy for patients with completely resected pulmonary LCNECs to assess the effect of adjuvant chemotherapy.
  
  
  METHODS
  The adjuvant mixture consisted of cisplatin and VP-16 and was administered after surgery to 15 patients with LCNECs from 2000 to 2005. We compared patient survival with historical data for LCNEC patients treated without platinum-based adjuvant chemotherapy after surgery.
  
  
  RESULTS
  There were no differences in age, gender, surgical methods, and staging between the adjuvant chemotherapy group and the control group. Median follow-up was 33 months for the adjuvant group and 42 months for the control group. Of the 15 patients in the adjuvant chemotherapy group, 2 patients had disease recurrence and 1 died of interstitial pneumonia. The overall survival rate at 2 and 5 years of patients with adjuvant chemotherapy was 88.9%. The overall survival rate between patients with adjuvant chemotherapy and the historical control group was significantly different.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Adjuvant chemotherapy consisting of cisplatin and VP-16 after surgery appears promising for the improvement of the prognosis for patients with completely resected LCNECs, and it should be evaluated further in larger multi-institutional trials.
authors.affiliation: Department of Thoracic Surgery, Graduate School of Medicine, Chiba University, Chiba, Japan.
authors.forename: Akira
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Iyoda
authors.forename: Kenzo
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Hiroshima
authors.forename: Yasumitsu
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Moriya
authors.forename: Yuichi
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Takiguchi
authors.forename: Yasuo
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Sekine
authors.forename: Kiyoshi
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Shibuya
authors.forename: Toshihiko
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Iizasa
authors.forename: Hideki
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Kimura
authors.forename: Yukio
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Nakatani
authors.forename: Takehiko
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Fujisawa
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000971:Antineoplastic Combined Chemotherapy Protocols / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D018278:Carcinoma, Neuroendocrine / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000601:surgery; D017024:Chemotherapy, Adjuvant; D002945:Cisplatin / Q000627:therapeutic use; D005047:Etoposide / Q000627:therapeutic use; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008175:Lung Neoplasms / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000601:surgery; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011013:Pneumonectomy; D011446:Prospective Studies; D016019:Survival Analysis; D016896:Treatment Outcome
chemical_list: D005047:Etoposide; D002945:Cisplatin