Radical Treatment of Synchronous Oligometastatic Non-Small Cell Lung Carcinoma

Non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) is the most frequent neoplasm worldwide and also represents the main cause of cancer death. However, it represents the main cause of death by cancer. The prognosis of survival at 5 years is poor, approximately 13-15%.

The timely detection of NSCLC is difficult and the options for curative treatment are limited since the majority of patients are diagnosed in advanced stages. The standard treatment in metastatic disease is cytotoxic chemotherapy with platins (cisplatin or carboplatin) in combination with a third generation drug (vinorelbine, paclitaxel, docetaxel, gemcitabine or pemetrexed). This therapeutic scheme results in response rates between 20-30%, with a mean overall survival between 8-11 months.

In recent years, research in oncology has focused on the development of therapies aimed at molecular targets that control the growth and proliferation of the tumor cell. Various monoclonal antibodies (bevacizumab, cetuximab) and tyrosine kinase inhibitors (erlotinib, gefitinib, afatinib, crizotinib) have been evaluated with this purpose in NSCLC treatment. Clinical studies in advanced NSCLC, using these new drugs with or without chemotherapy, have had favorable results by increasing the progression-free survival and the response rate, without being able to demonstrate to date, a significant improvement in the overall survival.

Various studies suggest that patients who clinically present with a limited number of metastases, a term defined as oligometastatic disease, could have a better prognosis of survival with a radical treatment, than for their counterparts with a greater number of metastasis.

Much of the current medical information on clinical outcomes in oligometastatic disease is based on clinical studies and retrospective case series of institutions. The majority of the reports have included a mix of patients with synchronous and metachronous oligometastatic disease, focusing on the radical treatment of specific sites such as the brain and adrenal glands. These results have been recognized by the European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO) and have been included in its treatment guidelines for lung cancer (2012). The recommendation states to consider some radical treatment in selected patients with solitary metastases.

There is limited information about the clinical benefits in overall survival in the subgroup of patients with NSCLC that clinically present with synchronous oligometastatic disease and equal to or less than 5 synchronous metastases at the time of diagnosis.

The purpose of this study is to add more information to the current medical literature about the benefits in overall survival of radical treatment of oligometastatic disease in patients with NSCLC and equal to or less than 5 synchronous metastases at the time of diagnosis. The outcomes of the study are to determine the global survival and progression-free survival in patients with synchronous oligometastatic (equal to or less than 5 sites) advanced NSCLC undergoing radical treatment of all metastatic sites and the primary tumor.

Inclusion criteria

• Pathology diagnosis of non-small cell lung cancer
• Any histology type (adenocarcinoma, epidermoid carcinoma or large cell carcinoma)
• age ≥18 years.
• Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group (ECOG) score 0-1
• Clinical stage IV according to staging system American Joint Committee on Cancer (AJCC) seventh EDITION
• Oligometastatic disease defined as metastases equal to or less than 5 sites.
• Synchronous metastases defined as those that are identified within the first month of the diagnosis of the primary tumor.
• Laboratory results: plasma leukocyte ≥3,000/mm3, platelets ≥100,000/mm3, hemoglobin ≥ 10 gr/dl, serum Creatinine ≤ 1.5 mg/dl, total bilirubin ≤1.5, transaminases ≤ 2.5 times the upper limit of normal (ULN), alkaline phosphatase < 5 times the ULN.
• Candidate to platinum-based chemotherapy.
• Life expectancy estimated with treatment of at least 24 weeks.
• Must have understood and signed the informed consent

Exclusion criteria

• Concurrent uncontrolled diseases
• Patients with malignant pleural or pericardial effusion.
• Previous treatments (radiotherapy treatment to the primary site, chemotherapy or treatment with tyrosine kinase inhibitor.)
• Pregnant or lactating women.
• Intercurrent malignant diseases, except basal cell carcinoma in skin inactive, carcinoma in situ of the cervix, when completely resected.