Prognostic factors for patients with advanced non-small cell lung cancer treated with gemcitabine-platinum as first-line therapy in an observational setting in China

Background: This study examined the prognostic factors associated with survival in advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients receiving gemcitabine-platinum regimens as first-line therapy in real-world clinical settings in China. Methods: Data was analyzed from a multinational, prospective, non-interventional, observational study of individuals receiving gemcitabine-platinum regimens as first-line therapy for NSCLC, focusing on 300 patients from mainland China. A Cox regression model was used to determine the association of 38 prognostic factors, including patient smoking characteristics, with overall survival. Results: In these 300 patients, the mean age was 58.9 (+/- 10.8) years, with males comprising 71% of the population. Thirty percent of patients had an Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group performance status (PS) of 0 and 70% had a PS of 1. The majority of patients had NSCLC of adenocarcinoma origin (57%). Multivariate Cox regression analyses adjusted for baseline factors revealed that gender, tumor (T) staging, metastasis (M) staging, liver metastases, serum albumin, and superior vena cava obstruction were significant prognostic factors. Smoking during therapy was not significantly associated with survival, although numbers were small for this variable (n = 16). Weight loss of >10% was a significant prognostic factor for adverse events. Conclusions: Gender, T staging, M staging, liver metastases, superior vena cava obstruction, and serum albumin are prognostic factors affecting overall survival in mainland Chinese patients receiving first-line gemcitabine-platinum regimens for advanced NSCLC. These negative prognostic factors may warrant further investigation in clinical trials.