[Role of thoracic radiotherapy in small cell bronchial carcinomas].

Radiotherapy plays a vital role in the treatment of small cell lung carcinoma. Nevertheless, it has recently become a subject of controversy. Local recurrences are frequently the cause of therapeutic failure in localized stages. The analysis of randomized trials has not clearly established the role of radiotherapy in the improvement of survival. The quality of radiotherapy, the dose, the volume, the fractionation as well as combined radiotherapeutic/chemotherapeutic regimens appear to be important factors.