Adding radiation to induction chemotherapy does not improve survival of patients with operable clinical N2 non-small cell lung cancer

Objective: Radiotherapy is commonly used in induction regimens for patients with non-small cell lung cancer with operable mediastinal nodal disease, although evidence has not shown a benefit over induction chemotherapy alone. We compared outcomes between induction chemotherapy and induction chemoradiation using the National Cancer Data Base. Methods: Induction radiation use and survival of patients who underwent lobectomy or pneumonectomy after induction chemotherapy for clinical T1-3N2M0 non-small cell lung cancer in the National Cancer Data Base from 2003 to 2006 were assessed using logistic regression, general linear regression, Kaplan-Meier, and Cox proportional hazard analysis. Results: Of 1362 patients who met study criteria, 834 (61%) underwent induction chemoradiation and 528 (39%) underwent induction chemotherapy. Lobectomy was performed in 82% of patients (n = 1111), and pneumonectomy was performed in 18% of patients (n = 251). Pneumonectomy was performed more often after induction chemoradiation than after induction chemotherapy (20% vs 16%, P = .04). Downstaging from N2 to N0/N1 was more common with induction chemoradiation compared with induction chemotherapy (58% vs 46%, P < .01), but 5-year survival of patients receiving induction chemoradiation and patients receiving induction chemotherapy was similar in unadjusted analysis (41% vs 41%, P = .41). In multivariable analysis, the addition of radiation to induction chemotherapy also was not associated with a survival benefit (hazard ratio, 1.03; 95% confidence interval, 0.89-1.18; P = .73). Conclusions: Induction chemoradiation is used in the majority of patients with non-small cell lung cancer with N2 disease who undergo induction therapy before surgical resection, but it is not associated with improved survival compared with induction chemotherapy.