Randomized study of chemotherapy and surgery versus radiotherapy for stage IIIA non-small-cell lung cancer: a National Cancer Institute of Canada Clinical Trials Group Study

Thirty-one patients with stage IIIA (N2) non-small-cell lung cancer were randomized to receive radiotherapy alone or chemotherapy with cisplatin and vinblastine followed by surgery. Response rates to induction chemotherapy and radiotherapy were 50% and 53.3% respectively. Complete surgical resection was possible for 62.5% of patients. Median survival times were 16.2 and 18.7 months for radiotherapy alone and chemotherapy-surgery respectively (P = Ns), with no long-term improvement in survival seen with combined-modality treatment.