RESUMO
PURPOSE: Taxane-containing induction chemotherapy (IC) regimens in combination with concurrent chemoradiotherapy (CCRT) have been compared with non-taxane-containing IC combined with CCRT in randomized controlled trials (RCTs) in Chinese patients with advanced nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC). This meta-analysis aimed to systematically evaluate their clinical efficacy and safety profiling in this ethnic population. METHODS: The electronic databases, PubMed, Embase, MEDLINE, and Chinese Biomedical Database, were searched for eligible studies. The outcomes included overall response rate (ORR), 1-year survival rate, and different types of adverse events. Odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated to evaluate the strength of the associations. RESULTS: A total of 12 RCTs (representing 835 patients) were identified. The pooled analysis showed that taxane-containing regimens had a significant improvement in ORR for nasopharyngeal lesion (OR =4.57, 95% CI =1.14-18.30, P=0.032, z=2.15) but not in cervical lymph nodes (OR =1.23, 95% CI =0.65-2.36, P=0.532, z=0.64) and in 1-year survival rates (OR =1.19, 95% CI =0.10-14.82, P=0.893, z=0.13) compared with non-taxane-containing regimens. Regarding the adverse events and toxicities, grade 3-4 leukopenia and neutropenia were significantly different between the two groups (P<0.001) in favor of the non-taxane-containing regimens, but grade 3-4 vomiting was significantly different between the two groups (P<0.005) in favor of the taxane-containing regimens. CONCLUSION: When combined with CCRT, taxane-containing IC regimens may be more efficient for short-term local control in Chinese patients with locally advanced NPC than the non-taxane-containing IC regimens. Moreover, the major toxic effects, which were bone marrow suppression, could be tolerated by majority of patients. More long-term follow-up and high-quality trials of NPC are needed to validate our findings.
RESUMO
OBJECTIVE: To compare the efficacy and complications of chemotherapy and late course three-dimensional conformal radiotherapy (3DCRT) in treating patients with stage III non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). PATIENTS AND METHODS: All patients were divided into two groups: to receive chemotherapy and late course 3DCRT (3DCRT group), or chemotherapy and conventional fraction radiation (control group). In the 3DCRT-group, patients were given 6~15 MV X-rays with a total dose of 40 Gy, followed by 3DCRT, 2.5 Gy~3.0 Gy per fraction, 1 fraction/ every day, total 68 Gy~70 Gy; in the control group, with conventional fraction radiation the total dose was 64~66 Gy. The chemotherapy regimen in both cases was EP (VP-16 and DDP). RESULTS: Sixty four patients with stage III NSCLC were divided into two groups: 32 patients into 3DCRT, 32 into the control group. One and 2-year survival rates in 3DCRT and control group were 87.5%, 56.3%mad 65.6%, 34.4%, respectively (P<0.05); local control rates were 90.6%, 81.3% and 65.6%, 53.1%, respectively (P<0.05). CONCLUSION: Chemotherapy and late course 3DCRT is associated with improved survival rate in patients with stage III NSCLC with good tolerability.
