LAUSR

AIM To evaluate the effect of thoracic radiation therapy (TRT) in elderly patients (aged ≥65 years) with extensive-stage small-cell lung cancer (ES-SCLC). PATIENTS & METHODS This study reviewed the records of 118 elderly patients with ES-SCLC (all with distant metastasis) through January 2006-December 2013. The patients were divided into either a chemotherapy (ChT)/TRT-combination group or a ChT-alone group. RESULTS The median survival time and 3-year overall survival rates in the ChT/TRT group were significantly higher than those in the ChT-alone group (17.0 vs 11.7 months; 18.1 vs 14.9%; p = 0.014). The 3-year overall survival rates in patients who received prophylactic cranial irradiation were also higher than the rates in patients who did not receive prophylactic cranial irradiation (18.1 vs 5.1%; p = 0.708). CONCLUSION TRT combined with ChT could provide a survival benefit to elderly patients with ES-SCLC.