Randomized Phase II Study of First‐Line Biweekly Gemcitabine and Carboplatin Versus Biweekly Gemcitabine and Carboplatin plus Maintenance Gemcitabine in Elderly Patients with Untreated Non‐Small Cell Lung Cancer: LOGIK0801

LESSONS LEARNED: The usefulness of maintenance gemcitabine (GEM) after biweekly carboplatin + GEM in elderly patients with non‐small cell lung cancer could not be proved. Superior overall survival was obtained in the group that did not receive maintenance therapy. BACKGROUND: The primary objective of this randomized phase II study was to assess progression‐free survival (PFS) in elderly patients with advanced non‐small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) treated with gemcitabine (GEM) maintenance therapy versus best supportive care following first‐line GEM plus carboplatin (CBDCA). METHODS: Elderly chemotherapy‐naive patients with stage IIIB or IV NSCLC were randomly assigned 1:1 to the control arm or the study arm. All patients received biweekly combination therapy with GEM and CBDCA (1,000 mg/m(2) GEM and CBDCA at an area under the curve [AUC] of 3 on days 1 and 15, every 4 weeks). In the study arm, patients with objective response or stable disease following three or four cycles of initial chemotherapy received maintenance GEM. RESULTS: Eighty‐four patients were enrolled. The objective response rates (ORRs) were 17.5% in the control arm and 14.0% in the study arm. The most common toxicity was neutropenia (control arm: 47.5% and study arm: 69.8%). The median progression‐free survivals were 4.99 months (control arm) and 4.44 months (study arm), and the median overall survivals (OSs) were 21.7 months (control arm) and 8.2 months (study arm). CONCLUSION: Our data do not support maintenance GEM after biweekly CBDCA+GEM in elderly patients with NSCLC.