 |
Vol.53 No.3 contents | Japanese/English |
 | Full Text of PDF (749K) Article in Japanese |
- Case Report -
A Patient with Squamous Cell Carcinoma of the Lung and a Poor Performance Status Who Improved with S-1 Monotherapy
Junya Okumura1, Shunichi Taki1, Ryo Sanda1, Akiko Ota1, Yasuyuki Takagi1, Yasuteru Sugino11Department of Respiratory Medicine, Toyota Memorial Hospital, Japan
Background. The number of lung cancer patients with a poor performance status (PS) will increase because of the aging of the population. Chemotherapy for lung cancer has been improving, but its role in lung cancer patients with a poor PS has not been established. Case. A 65-year-old male was referred to our hospital in December 2008 because of progressive dyspnea and chest tightness. Chest computed tomography (CT) showed a mass lesion in the lingual lobe and lymphadenopathy from the left neck to bilateral hilar lymph nodes. On pathological examination of a percutaneous CT-guided mediastinum lymph node aspiration biopsy specimen, squamous cell carcinoma of the lung (cT4N3M1 stage IV) was diagnosed. Although the patient's general condition was PS 3, he and his family strongly desired some type of anticancer therapy. We therefore decided to try oral anticancer medication after discussions with the patient. The patient received S-1 monotherapy for two weeks, followed by a one week rest period. After two courses, his symptoms disappeared and the findings of the images were improved. We were able to perform a total of 13 courses without any hematological or non-hematological toxicities higher than grade 2. The objective tumor response was assessed as a complete response. There was no evidence of recurrence on a follow-up examination as of September 2012. Conclusion. This rare case of progressive squamous cell carcinoma of the lung that responded to S-1 monotherapy suggests that S-1 monotherapy may therefore be effective and well tolerated as a first-line chemotherapy for squamous cell lung cancer patients with a poor PS.
key words: Squamous cell carcinoma of the lung, Poor PS, First-line chemotherapy, S-1 monotherapy, Complete response
Received: March 1, 2013
Accepted: June 24, 2013
JJLC 53 (3): 264-269, 2013
