Validation of a Score Developed to Estimate the 6-month Survival of Patients Treated with Palliative Local Radiotherapy for Advanced Lung Cancer

Abstract

Aim: To validate a score estimating the 6-month survival of lung cancer patients irradiated for locally advanced disease.

Patients and methods: The validation cohort of this study included 125 patients. The score for each patient was calculated by adding the points (6-month survival divided by 10) from the factors lymph node stage, distant metastasis and performance score. Patients were divided into three groups, 10-11 (N=36), 12-14 (N=69) and 15-17 points (N=20). Six-month survival of each group from the original study was compared to its corresponding group from this validation study.

Results: Six-month survival rates were 19% (10-11 points), 51% (12-14 points) and 75% (16-17 points) in the validation cohort (p<0.001) and 13%, 47% and 82% in the previous study (p<0.001). The group-by-group comparisons between both cohorts did not reveal any significant differences.

Conclusion: The score was reproducible and valid for estimating the 6-month survival of lung cancer patients assigned to palliative thoracic radiotherapy.

Keywords: Locally advanced lung cancer; palliative radiotherapy; prognostic score; survival prognosis; thoracic radiotherapy; validation.