Small cell carcinoma of the lung: influence of age on treatment outcome.

Two hundred twenty-three patients between 29 and 78 years of age with small cell cancer of the lung were studied in serial protocols at the University of Maryland Cancer Center from 1975 to 1982. Each of these patients received chemotherapy consisting of doxorubicin, cyclophosphamide, and etoposide. In this paper we explore age and its interaction with the patient's extent of disease as it relates to clinical outcome variables such as the achievement of a complete response (CR), survival times, and various measures of toxicity. Preliminary evidence is found to suggest that an age-extent of disease interaction affects both the probability of obtaining a CR and the length of survival. Patients of all ages can benefit from treatment of small cell carcinoma of the lung, with CR as the treatment goal. However, increased toxicity and early death remain as barriers to successful treatment of the elderly.