Induction Chemotherapy Using Paclitaxel, Carboplatin, CPT-11 With Pegfilgrastim

Lung cancer remains the leading cause of cancer-related mortality in the United States. In 2002, approximately 170,000 new cases of lung cancer will be diagnosed, and approximately 160,000 deaths will occur. Eighty percent of cases of lung cancer are of the non-small cell type, and 30 to 35% will be Stage IIIA/B and are considered potentially curable. The standard of care in the United States for those patients with unresectable Stage IIIA/B and a good performance status (PS) is a combination of systemic chemotherapy and thoracic radiation therapy (TRT). What is not clear in the management of these patients is the optimal strategy to employ in the combined-modality approach, as well as the optimal chemotherapy and radiation therapy dose and schedule. Induction and Concurrent Chemoradiation Therapy for Stage IIIA/B NSCLC The use of combined modality has become the standard of care in unresectable Stage IIIA/B non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). In the curative approach to this disease, both local control and eradication of occult micrometastatic disease must be achieved. Combined-modality trials employing induction chemotherapy have suggested a reduction in the rate of metastatic disease, suggesting that effectively delivered chemotherapy can eradicate occult micrometastatic disease. All of the trials cited have shown improved survival for the combined-modality arm. Combined-modality trials employing concurrent chemoradiation have suggested improved loco-regional control resulting in improved survival. These data suggest that both induction and concurrent treatment may be important and may exert their benefit in different manners: induction therapy with effective chemotherapy reduces the rate of overt metastatic disease, while concurrent treatment improves local control by enhancing the local effect of TRT. Four trials to date have been published addressing sequential versus concurrent therapy. In these trials, concurrent treatment yielded improved survival over the sequential approach. The value of either induction or consolidation therapy in addition to concurrent chemotherapy is currently being addressed in randomized Phase III trials. The study will evaluate the incorporation of ZD1839 with concurrent CP and TCRT to a dose of 74 Gy following 2 cycles of induction CIP. The primary objective will be to define the toxicity profile of this approach. With amendment 2, patients will no longer receive maintenance ZD1839. Given the data generated on LCCC 9603 and 2001, this "hybrid" platform of induction CIP followed by concurrent TCRT (74 Gy) and CP seems appropriate for incorporation of ZD1839 because of the general tolerance of this therapy in good PS, unresectable, Stage III NSCLC subjects. Given that esophagitis is the primary toxicity seen with this approach, stopping rules will be in place for excessive esophageal toxicity.