Stabilization of disease as a useful predictor of survival following second-line chemotherapy in small cell lung cancer and ovarian cancer patients

To assess the value of disease stabilization (SD) as a predictor of surviva l following chemotherapy, data were analyzed from multicenter clinical tria ls in small cell lung cancer (SCLC) and ovarian cancer (OC) patients receiv ing various second-line chemotherapy regimens. In both patient populations, SD (lasting >8 weeks) and partial responses (PR) were associated with a su rvival benefit versus progressive disease (PD); interestingly, the survival benefit was similar between the two groups (PR and SD). These results sugg est that, at least in these populations, SD may represent a potential benef it of chemotherapy and therefore the distinction between SD and PR may not be useful.