What has the meta-analysis contributed to today’s standard of care in the treatment of thoracic malignancies?

Lung Cancer. 2008 Apr 28. [Epub ahead of print] [Link]

Meert AP, Sculier JP.

Institut Jules Bordet, Service des Soins Intensifs & Oncologie Thoracique, Bruxelles, Belgium.

Abstract

Meta-analyses dealing with the treatment of thoracic malignancies (non-small cell lung cancer, small cell lung cancer and mesothelioma) are reviewed including those performed in the context of a systematic review of the literature or based on individual patients data.

Their results have been used as an effective tool for resolving various clinical questions, providing more reliable evidence for some clinical practice: (neo)adjuvant chemotherapy after surgery for resectable NSCLC, radiochemotherapy for patients with unresectable limited NSCLC and limited SCLC, advantage of chemotherapy for advanced NSCLC and identification of the most active drugs. However, it is important to understand the limits of their methodology in order to avoid inappropriate interpretations.

Keywords: Meta-analysis; Systematic review; Non-small cell lung cancer; Small cell lung cancer; Mesothelioma; Lung cancer