Postoperative radiotherapy for patients with completely resected stage IIIA-N2 non-small cell lung cancer: opt-in or opt-out

Lucheng Zhu; Bing Xia; Shenglin Ma

doi:10.1111/1759-7714.14335

Postoperative radiotherapy for patients with completely resected stage IIIA-N2 non-small cell lung cancer: opt-in or opt-out

Thorac Cancer. 2022 Mar;13(5):659-663. doi: 10.1111/1759-7714.14335. Epub 2022 Feb 2.

Authors

Lucheng Zhu^{1

2}, Bing Xia¹, Shenglin Ma¹

Affiliations

¹ Department of Radiotherapy, Affiliated Hangzhou Cancer Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, China.
² Department of Oncology, Affiliated Hangzhou Cancer Hospital, Zhejiang Chinese Medical University, Hangzhou, China.

Abstract

The role of adjuvant radiotherapy in completely resected pIIIA-N2 non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) has long been debated. Evidence from previous retrospective and prospective studies showed that postoperative radiotherapy could reduce the incidence of local recurrence and prolong disease-free survival, while two recently reported randomized controlled trials (lung ART and PORT-C) both demonstrated no survival benefit of postoperative radiotherapy. The great gap between our knowledge and reality has made us rethink the value of postoperative radiotherapy. In this mini review, we elaborate on the role of postoperative radiotherapy in completely resected pIIIA-N2 NSCLC.

Keywords: IIIA-N2 disease; adjuvant radiotherapy; lung cancer.

Publication types

Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
Review

MeSH terms

Carcinoma, Non-Small-Cell Lung* / radiotherapy
Carcinoma, Non-Small-Cell Lung* / surgery
Humans
Lung Neoplasms* / radiotherapy
Lung Neoplasms* / surgery
Neoplasm Staging
Prospective Studies
Retrospective Studies